The Affairs of the Heart
by Pendragon2601
Summary: Alexandra is a typical 1940's girl who is friends with the Pevensie's. She travels with them to Narnia and so on... But upsetting things about Alexandra's past and about who she really is start to reveal themselves. Chapter 36 finally up! Please read AN. Very strong T.
1. Prologue

_Alright, I know that I have said before that I would wait until I had finished one of my other stories, but you know when you get a really great story and you just have to write and have to upload or else it would keep you awake all night until you do? Well I got that feeling at the moment and I'm already writing the sequel even though this isn't actually finished yet. I'm sure someone out there gets what I mean, right?_

_Please read and review this because I would really like to know what you think of it. This also is one of the very first stories I wanted to write (way before I even got an account on this). _

_I hope you like it._

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Chronicles of Narnia but I do own any characters you don't recognise. :)_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Prologue**

Hello, my name is Alexandra India Portentia. I am fourteen years old and I live in a small borough called Finchley. I have long, curly black hair and hazel brown eyes. I have a heart-shaped face with slightly pale skin. I used to live with my father but he was sent off to fight in the war against the Germans. That was two days ago and I haven't got any other family to look after me. Well apart from my grandmother but that's alright. I don't need anyone to look after me, I've got my locket.

My locket was a gift from my father and I never took it off. He gave it to me on the day he left for the army. The locket was an ornate silver cage that contained everything I needed – a picture of my father. I could always see his face anytime I wanted, but the only problem with it, was no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't open. But it's definitely in there; my Dad put it in there personally. He told me himself and he's never lied to me at all. Not once.

If you're wondering by any chance, then no, I don't have a mother. It was just me and Dad. My father said to me once that my mother was very beautiful and that I had her eyes, but she left me with Dad when I was a baby. She had to leave apparently, had to go to some place. My father told me that the last thing she said to us was "I'll be back in two minutes.", but she never did come back. My father was heartbroken.

So that was my Mum and Dad. I'll tell you a bit more about me.

No, I won't actually, I would probably bore you. Instead, I'll tell you about my friends and my enemies. Don't worry, I'm not crazy, a wise person once said "You can't have one without the other." And anyway they're really interesting.

I'll start off with my three friends. The youngest out of my friends is ten years old and is quite clever when you think about it. Her name is Lucy Pevensie and she has three older siblings, two of which are my other friends. Her oldest sibling is called Peter Pevensie; he is sixteen years old and is quite cute. It's a fact. Almost half of St Finbar's (the all girl's boarding school) think so too. But he sometimes can be a bit...well, let's just say big-headed. But don't tell him I said that! And lastly my other friend is Susan Pevensie. The cleverest and prettiest fifteen-year-old you could ever meet in your whole life. That roughly sums her up really, apart from the fact that nearly all of the boys, excluding Peter, at Hendon House (the all boys boarding school across the road) are completely infatuated with her and we'd have to beat them off with a stick, literally. Either that or walk home in disguise or walking as far away as possible from Susan.

Now, when I said "enemies" earlier, I'll admit that was a bit harsh. When I say "enemies" I mean "one person I don't like". That "one person I don't like" happens to be Lucy Pevensie's third oldest sibling. Edmund Pevensie.

Edmund Pevensie is the same age as me – fourteen. He is a good person deep down inside, it's just that he doesn't show it. You can never predict anything he's going to do; he bottles everything up. However, whenever he's angry he shouts at you and plays pranks on you. That's the only thing I've figured out about him. That and the fact that he's a brilliant chess player. I only figured that much about him because he's been playing pranks on everybody, especially Peter, but that's mainly because Peter is Edmund's main target.

Oh, the magic of brotherly love.

That brings me to my next interesting fact. Sort of. Because when you read on to the next chapter, everything that you thought was right will be wrong, everything you know will be changed and you will find out that everything that I have just told you is a lie.

My name is Alexandra India Portentia and this is my story of how five British, London-born children, stumbled across a wardrobe in the countryside, where fate can only bring back four. My story is plagued with magic, chivalry, good deeds, betrayal, love and danger. But it is inevitable in this fascinating and magical land that is Narnia...


	2. Escaping the bombs is easy

_Hello, _

_If you had read the note before at chapter 8 (unless I've already deleted it, in that case don't worry about it), then this is the slightly new and improved Chapter 1. I hope you like it and I hope you'll review and tell me what you think._

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Chronicles of Narnia but I do own any characters you don't recognise. :)_

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**The Affairs of the Heart. **

**Chapter 1**

**Escaping the bombs is easy when you've done it for a year. **

My story starts where every story starts for British children living in a warring world. In the comfort of our own homes, sitting in our favourite armchairs in front of the warm welcome fireplace, reading a favourite children's book, playing a board game or off somewhere else causing mischief. Doing anything fun just to distract our minds from the uneasiness outside of our homes. We would do anything quiet for our worrying parents who were cooking our meals in the kitchens or cleaning our muddy clothes in the laundry room, keeping an open ear listening for any noise. No one dared to listen to the radio, too afraid that it would attract too much unwanted attention.

It was 1940 and the Germans had been at war with Britain for a year now, both fighting in a battlefield somewhere in France or Belgium, or terrifying Britain with falling bombs from the German aircraft that tore across the sky. Each night as the planes flew by, it caused devastation across London. But it can't be that bad here in London, from what I've heard Plymouth's got it worse. They do have shipping ports after all. Every morning, families would wake up wailing that their family members had died, or crying with relief that they were safe and that they had survived the night, relishing in the moment before the fear crept back and they'd be dragged back kicking and screaming in to the depression of having to do all of it again later that night.

However for me, I was not entitled to those luxuries. I had no family to look after me - they were either dead or fighting in the war. I had no little brothers or sisters to look after nor did I have any older siblings. Instead I was all alone in the living room in front of the fireplace with a big heavy book on my lap. I didn't mind really, I've been on my own since my father was drafted in to help with the war. My grandmother, bless her, was bedridden with bronchitis and a fever so she couldn't come from her house in Ealing to look after me. But I'm not alone really; Mrs Pevensie said I could go visit her and my friends any time I wanted. She lives next door and we share her bomb shelter in her garden. That was the truth, but that's not what my father told the social services. According to them I was being looked after by an "Uncle Andrew".

I was in the middle of reading the fifth chapter of my book when the kettle in the kitchen started to whistle. I stood up and walked to the kitchen carrying my book along with me so that I could read it in the kitchen whilst having a cup of coffee. If my Dad had been home with me today and not fighting over in Belgium, I would most certainly not be having coffee. Dad was very strict about the rations and he loved coffee so I was not allowed to have any myself. But since my Dad is not here...well, what he doesn't know won't hurt him.

I took a cup from one of the top cupboards and scooped some of the coffee granules in to the cup and then poured the boiling hot water in to my cup, stirring the mixture with a small teaspoon. I knew that I shouldn't be having coffee at this time of the evening. Because of all of the caffeine in it I wouldn't be able to go to sleep at all tonight. I sat down at the kitchen table in the dark and took a sip from the coffee. _Perhaps maybe I didn't want to go to sleep, _I thought as I took another sip, feeling the boiling water and coffee granule mix slip down my throat, warming my insides as it went. _Perhaps I just want to stay alert for the bombs._ Yes, that was it.

I turned back to my book and started to read, sipping my coffee every once in a while. I love reading fiction. It's the only thing to keep my mind from the bombs and the terror outside. An escape from reality. I could just imagine being someone else in a totally different country. Not even in the same time zone even, just somewhere else. My book was a very old copy of _Classic Greek Myth's and Legends _and I was reading a story about Persephone and the Pomegranate. It was said that Hades had fallen in love with Persephone, so he kidnapped her and brought her to the Underworld and married her. But to make her stay in the Underworld he had to make her eat something that had been grown there, so Hades gave her a pomegranate. But she only ate seven seeds so she had to go back up top for nine months because her mother Demeter missed her too much. Of course this also caused the start of the Four Seasons because Demeter was the goddess of the harvest and because she missed her daughter so much she became depressed. But in the end everyone wins, don't they?

After I had finished my coffee I decided that I should go to bed even though I didn't want to. I haven't been sleeping well for the past few months, I keep having nightmares. I keep dreaming of my mother and a gate. I don't know why but I keep feeling that she shouldn't go through the gate but she does. I had been so caught up in my book and coffee that I had realised that the room had steadily gotten darker and now I had no idea where I was going. I picked up my coffee mug and stood up slowly, cautiously feeling my way towards the sink. Every family had been warned that if any light came out of our houses we would be punished and Hitler could very well just bomb our houses and kill us. I made it to the sink and placed my mug in it. I would wash it in the morning; there was no way that I could find the washing up liquid in the dark. As I turned to exit the room, my hand brushed against something solid and fell to the floor with a _smash!_

_Uh oh, what have I done now?_ I thought, hoping that I hadn't knocked over something valuable. I crouched low and felt all of the drawers, counting each one as I went along. _One... two... three... four... yes! Here it is!_ I slid the drawer open and picked up some candles and lit them with some spare matches that were lying around in the drawer amongst the melted candle wax and ripped up pieces of matchbox. I then crawled back to where I had been whilst trying to keep the flame going on the small candle in my hand. On the floor were the broken pieces of an ornament strewn across the floor. It was Mrs Pevensie's birthday present from me and my Grandmother; a little statue of a marionette with a goofy smile. It was Mrs Pevensie's birthday in a few days and I thought it was a nice thing to repay her for looking after me. She's like a secondary mother to me, what with my mother gone.

I stood up and starting feeling my way round to the cupboard in the corner of the kitchen where I knew the broom was, but as I stood up I heard the most horrifying noise in the world; the sound of an air raid siren. They were here again. I started to feel scared as I abandoned my attempt to get the broom out of the cupboard and tried to find my way to the back door of the kitchen. The flame on my candle was flickering and becoming smaller. At the moment it was about the size of a thumbnail on an adult's hand. I tried to walk a bit faster but it was no use. By the time I reached the back door the flame flickered one last time and then disintegrated. I started to panic as my hands desperately fumbled for the key that was in the lock of the door.

_BOOM! ...BOOM! ...BOOM!_

The bombs had started falling on the city and they were getting louder. I was now frantically feeling for the key. I did not want to be stuck in here when the bombs got closer to here. My left hand closed around the doorknob whilst my right hand patted gingerly around underneath it for the key.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

I let out a whimper as the bombs got louder.

"Come on! Where is it? Where is that bloody key?" I whimpered feeling a few tears roll down my cheeks. I don't usually swear, (My grandmother would probably clout me one if she heard me swear, she said that only sailors swore and not young ladies.) but at the moment I was so scared that I forgot my manners. My long thin fingers brushed along in to a long piece of metal sticking out of the key hole. _Yes! Finally!_ It was the key. Without a moments thought I turned the key clockwise and pushed the door open running outside and up the steps on to the grass.

It was truly horrific outside. There were big lights searching across the sky, the deafening sound of the sirens, the loud booms of the German bombs falling on houses, followed by screams as they hit someone. In the distance, I could see fires erupting around and fire wardens trying to put them out. My mind was in a panic, but I had to focus. _Find Mrs Pevensie. Find the bomb shelter._ I ran to the fence that separated my garden from theirs and started to climb the makeshift podium that Edmund and I had made with Peter's help before our father's went away to war, so that I could get over the fence should the situation arise.

I could hear shrieks and shouts coming from next door.

"No Edmund come back!"

"I'll get him!"

_Oh no._ I hurried as quickly as I could to get over the fence. At the moment I was in the middle of swinging my other leg over so that I was sitting on the fence. I could only imagine what this would've looked like to any passers by. Suddenly there was a deafening _BOOM!_ as a bomb exploded nearby, sending massive shock waves for miles around. One of the waves had caught me and I fell off of the fence and on to the ground with a _thud!_

There was a sharp pain in the side of my chest and I started to feel tired. My eyelids were starting to droop. I could only hear more shouting coming from Mrs Pevensie and the rushed sounds of someone's feet pounding the ground before I involuntarily blacked out and gave in to the numbness of unconsciousness.


	3. Meeting a moody old housekeeper

_(New and improved chapter!)_

_Chapter two is here, sorry it took so long. I had a little trouble write the beginning of this. I fininshed my GCSE's finally and hopefully I passed them all. Thank you for reviewing guys, I really appreciate it. Special thanks go to Narnia-Queen-and-Queen-of-fantasy and Differentbutunique for sticking with my story so far. :)_

_I decided to do a little tweeking to make my story last longer and I did a lot of research in to World War Two and the actual books and characters, so this is a little AU, a little Bookverse and a little Movieverse. But I hope you enjoy it. :)_

_Please review, I really would like to know what you think. Is there any way I can improved this story?_

_Enjoy!_

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_**Chapter Two**

**Meeting a moody old housekeeper named Mrs Macready**

"Mummy, is she going to be alright?" I heard a little girl's voice say quietly from beside me. It sounded so faint and feeble to me but I couldn't tell if it was because of the little girl or because I couldn't tell exactly where the little girl's voice was coming from. All of my attention kept dissipating and I kept being distracted by the thin swirling patterns floating around on a canvas background of black. It was so mesmerising to watch, just following the patterns...

"Of course she'll be alright dear, she's safe with us. Now Lucy, try and get some sleep." replied a kind motherly voice from the same area as the little girl's voice. _Hold up, I know that voice._ I thought as I tried to open my eyes. But the more I tried, the more I got a headache. My whole body felt heavy and sore, like I was some mangled ragdoll that had been thrown against a wall.

"Oww..." I groaned as I opened my eyes, my throat dry and scratchy as I spoke. My vision was blurry and all I could see was a spinning room with blurry figures standing over me. One of the figures was waving their hands over my face as if they were waving _Hello! _I tried to wave back but I couldn't move my arm. As I turned my head to see what was wrong, one of the figures pulled my head back and shined a bright light in my eyes, blinding each eye as it went from left to right and back again.

"Mum, her pupils are dilated and her perception is slightly off." spoke the figure with the light. I blinked my eyes until my vision cleared and I saw a tired-looking boy with scruffy, sandy blonde hair and blue eyes, talking to a woman with a kind face and short, stylish brown hair.

"She's got concussion then." spoke another voice from somewhere to my right. I couldn't see who they were but I knew who they were.

"Susan?" I croaked, wincing in pain as I spoke. I looked around the room suddenly realising that there were more people in the room around me. "Peter? Mrs Pevensie? What happened...?"

"Alex, you're awake!" exclaimed a voice, but before I could see who it was, something heavy landed on me like a knobbly sack of potatoes. I shrieked with pain and I clamped my eyes tight shut to stop the tears from spilling out.

"Lucy! Get off her!" Susan shouted as Lucy was dragged off of me whilst she was crying apologies. Mrs Pevensie spoke quiet soothing words as she lifted my arm up to see where I was hurt. I felt two gentle little prods at my sides making me flinch and cry out in pain again.

"You've got a couple of broken ribs." Mrs Pevensie frowned. "But it's not too hard to fix. Peter, could you fetch me the bandages out of the first aid kit? And Susan, could you put Lucy and Edmund to bed please?"

"What? But I'm not tired!" whined a voice from another corner of the small bomb shelter that we were in but I knew that the voice belonged to Edmund.

"Just do what Mum says!" snapped Peter from the end of my bed, as he opened the first aid box.

"I'll listen to Mum, not you!" shouted Edmund, making Peter turn to give Edmund a fierce glare.

"Boys, please! Let's not argue now. Edmund, just go to bed please and stop arguing with your brother." Mrs Pevensie pleaded whilst they grumbled and reluctantly did as they were told. Why were boys so damn stubborn? _Oops, sorry Grandmother!_ I hastily thought feeling a little guilty that I swore.

"Now Alex, this may hurt a little but I need you to be a big girl and stay still while I set them in place." Mrs Pevensie said in a soothing voice that I could very much just sleep peacefully to. I nodded and squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for the pain. After a few minutes of poking and prodding, Mrs Pevensie had snapped my broken ribs back in to place and bandaged me up (after quickly telling Peter and Edmund to look away so that she could take my shirt off).

"Thank you Mrs Pevensie." I said as I slowly sat up on the bed with the help of Susan.

"_Alex."_ Mrs Pevensie said looking straight at me, trying to hide a small smile that had appeared on her face.

"Sorry. Thank you _Aunty_ _Helen._" I replied with a grin. Mrs Pevensie had always insisted on calling her by her maiden name or by Aunty Helen, since we had known each other for years. I was always over their house that I was like part of the family but I had a habit of being formal and polite.

"You should probably get some sleep, _all of you_." She said eyeing each one of us in turn. We all nodded and got ready for bed whilst Aunty Helen told Lucy a bedtime story to get her back to sleep. I stayed on the bed that I was lying on whilst Susan sat at the end of my bed with my legs across her lap like a blanket. It was a bit of a tight squeeze inside with the six of us, even though the bomb shelter was the second biggest that the government could give us. The biggest went to the Cameron's down the road because they had five children to look after, as well as their neighbour's three children.

I had always liked the Cameron's even though I did accidently kill their pet cat, Mr Tiddles, when I was six. But it wasn't just my fault! It was Edmund's idea to feed Mr Tiddles. How were we to know that cats don't eat Turkish Delight? Back then Edmund used to play all the time with me and his siblings, but now...well, we don't speak anymore. Edmund just turned horrid when Mr Pevensie went to fight in the war four months before my father went. It was like he had been turned in to a completely different person.

I lay back against my pillow feeling tired. I wondered whether my father was alright. Was he still alive? Was he injured? Would he be coming home soon? Would he have changed? From what I've heard from the Davidson's next door, their Uncle had come back from fighting stark raving mad! I would hate that to happen to my father. I shuddered and raised me hand to my chest to touch my locket only to touch my collarbone.

"Where's my locket? I need my locket!" I panicked looking all around myself for it. If I had lost it I don't know what I'd do, it was the only thing I had left from my father.

"Alex, calm down. Peter was looking after it whilst you were asleep." Susan soothed as Peter walked over holding my locket out to me. I let out a sigh of relief as I took my necklace and tied it around my neck, relaxing back on the bed whilst holding my locket in my hand. I looked at the silver locket cage. It was so beautiful, so delicately made with intricate detail like the jeweller had spent many sleepless nights making it perfect. The cage had a look that made it seemed as if it resembled a wicker basket, each silver strand weaving in and out over all of the other strands until there was only a few tiny gaps left visible. I felt along the side opposite the small hinge, slipping my thumbnail in between to try and pry it open to see the picture, but as always it wouldn't open. _Why won't it open?_ I gave up after three more attempts, resting my head on my pillow closing my eyes.

I didn't go to sleep though. The bombings were still going on outside the comfort of the shelter and I was woken up every time a bomb was dropped close to us. _How could anyone sleep in this amount of racket?_ But it wasn't just the noise of the bombings that kept me awake; I could hear Mrs Pevensie muttering something to someone in the corner of the shelter, far away from us so not to wake us up.

"Peter, I want you to look after Alexandra as well as your siblings." She muttered to her son. I could feel Mrs Pevensie sending worried glances over to where I was.

"Alright Mum. But why would Mr Portentia-"

Mrs Pevensie interrupted, hushing her son quickly before he revealed too much. "Not here Peter, try to get some sleep. You've got a big day tomorrow." Peter silenced and did what he was told. Why were he and Mrs Pevensie talking about me? And what was that about my father? I had never been so confused in my life, but I did what I only could do. I put it to the back of my mind and fell asleep.

The next morning the Pevensie's and I went to the train station to be evacuated to the countryside. The government had issued that all children under the age of eighteen had to be sent away from the bombings in London. We were being sent to someone called Professor Digory Kirke and his housekeeper Mrs Macready according to our labels that were stitched to our fronts. I was excited and a little sad. Would Mrs Pevensie be safe here in London? It would be awful if she had died, Lucy was only ten years old.

After saying our goodbyes to Mrs Pevensie and a good deal of pulling and tugging along, we boarded the steam train and found a compartment. There were two children already sitting gloomily side by side on one seat. They looked around Lucy's age and brother and sister. It must have been scary for them, imagine it; ten years old and going thousands of miles away to live with some stranger who might not even be nice. They looked up as we entered and sat down, but that was it. I picked up my tattered _Greek myths_ book and started to read. We had found it amongst the wreckage of my kitchen. Apparently the bomb that had been dropped last night and had caused me to fall and break my ribs had been closer than we actually thought. Thank goodness it was only a stray bomb; otherwise we'd be amongst the wreckage instead of here on a train.

"What are you reading?" a voice asked from beside me.

I looked up to find Edmund peering over my shoulder at my book. I blinked. Was this really happening? Edmund hadn't talked to me in over four months, why was he now?

"_Greek myths and Legends._" I replied feeling perplexed. I moved the book so that he could read too. He gave me a small smile and began to read with me. I guess he still wanted to be friends. I hope.

As the journey continued the little brother and sister had left and had been collected by a very stern looking woman in a muddy kitchen apron over her flowery dress and wellington boots. _She must be a farmer's wife. Those poor kids. _I thought as the train left the station. Lucy and Peter had fallen asleep and Susan looked out the window as the countryside passed us by in a colourful blur. It felt as if we were strangers, not like friends or family.

An hour later, we arrived at Coombe Halt station. We got off the train with our bags and watched as the train pulled away from us and off in to the distance. We waited for someone to pick us up and take us to Professor Kirke's home.

"I'm hungry." Lucy moaned as her stomach growled loudly.

"Didn't you eat your lunch?" Peter asked with a frown.

"I wanted to save it for later but I think I left it on the train." She replied looking at Peter with large eyes. I went in to my bag and pulled out my lunch. All that was left was an apple and a tin of condensed milk.

"Here Lucy, have mine. Sorry it's not much." I handed her the brown paper bag which she gratefully took and sat down on the steps next to Edmund. Peter gave me a thankful smile before we joined them on the steps. As soon as I sat down I could hear a rumble in the distance.

"I think I can hear a car." I spoke looking up the dusty road for any glimpse of a car driving to collect us.

_Honk! Honk!_

We all stood up and rushed to grab our bags before lining up by the stairs just as a car drove up to the railway track. We smiled and waved at the driver hoping he would notice us and stop. With three furious beeps, a black Royals Royce car drove past leaving us standing at the station like fools.

"The Professor knew we were coming." Susan said, ever the logical person.

"Maybe we've been incorrectly labelled." Edmund said unsurely, squinting at his own label hoping it would prove him wrong. I peered at my own label.

_Alexandra India Portentia_

_From: Finchley, London._

_To: Professor D. Kirke, Kent._

"Nope, we were supposed to go to Professor Kirke's house." I sighed silently hoping that he would come soon. It was starting to get cold.

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

"Susan, Peter! Look at that horse! Isn't she beautiful?" Lucy cried suddenly, tugging on Peter's sleeve and pointing at a majestic white horse that was trotting up the road, pulling a wooden cart with a woman sat on it, encouraging the horse to go on.

"Whoa! Whoa." The woman said as the horse slowed down in front of us. The woman peered at us through her half moon glasses like a hawk, with her greying brown hair pulled tight in a bun at the back of her head.

"Mrs...Macready?" Peter hesitantly asked, his voice trembling.

"I'm 'fraid so." the woman replied with a strong Scottish accent. "Is this it then? Haven't you brought anything else?"

"No ma'am," Peter replied politely, glancing at us all quickly. "It's just us."

"Small favours." She said curtly before nodding her head for us to get in the cart. Without a moment's thought, we all scrambled in and Mrs Macready urged the horse on as we headed to Professor Kirke's house. We travelled for miles until we reached a village with a cafe and a post office.

"Nearly there, just two more miles." Mrs Macready called back to us as we rode through the village, watching as the villagers peered and waved at us. The cart rode over a road bump making me jump and slide towards the end of the cart.

"Whoa..!" I shouted as slid down the seat. Just as I was about to fall out, two strong arms pulled me back on by my waist. I winced in pain as my ribs started to hurt again, but I ignored it and turned to see Peter holding my waist.

"Thanks Pete." I smiled and held on to my seat more tightly. We soon arrived at a huge Manor with a large green lawn and bushes and flowers of every colour. It was the most beautiful house I had ever seen in my life. From what I could see there were more than three floors. Standing at the front of the house were three women smiling and dressed in the same sort of clothes as Mrs Macready.

"Children, this is Ivy, Margaret and Betty. They will be helping to look after you as well as myself. Any cheek or bad behaviour from you and you will be punished." Mrs Macready said before leaving us with the three women. One of the women stepped forward with a smile. She looked quite young with light brown hair and green eyes. She was dressed in an apron and looked as if she had just finished cooking and smelt of butter biscuits.

"Hello children. I'm Ivy." She said with a thick Irish accent. "Don't worry about the Macready; she just likes her job too much. What're your names?"

"Never mind that Ivy, they need a wash!" exclaimed a second woman who looked the same age as Mrs Macready came striding up and pinched Lucy's cheek until it turned red. "I am not having dirt all over my clean floors after I have just spent all day cleaning them."

"Oh hush up Margaret and let go of the girl's cheek before you break her capillaries!" shouted the third woman behind Ivy. She looked like my Grandma. She had a plump figure and grey whispery hair, but I could've mistaken her for about fifty. Margaret left go of Lucy's cheek as the old woman tottered forward to give us all a look over, as if she was inspecting us.

"Now let's see...you boys can help outside collecting wood for the fireplace and the kitchen. You dear girl, can help Margaret with the cleaning duties. And you two can help Ivy in the kitchen cooking the Professor's meals." She said giving us all jobs to do. Unluckily for Susan, she was going to spend a lot of time with Margaret. Me and Lucy though...well I'd say we'd got the better half of the bargain. Betty surveyed us some more before she came back to me.

"Dear girl, you need to be outside more. You look like a ghost!" she said holding my head up to look at my pale face. I started to feel quite nauseous and dizzy. My legs wobbled and the next thing I know I'm in Edmunds arms being lowered to the floor.

"I think it's her ribs again. Look at her side." Susan said as Betty knelt down by my side to look at my ribs.

"Why is she here? She should be in hospital." Betty muttered to herself. "Let's get her inside before she passes out." I was then lifted up and taken inside by Peter, the only one strong enough to carry me. I barely even saw inside the house before I was set down on a comfy bed whilst Betty mended my ribs properly. I felt all of the pain but I had no energy to say that it hurt, I was just too tired. After I was fixed and bandaged up, Ivy came in with some soup for supper telling me that I missed supper whilst Betty was fixing my ribs. I didn't even realise what the time was. Susan and Lucy came in shortly after, getting ready for bed.

"Alex, are you alright?" Susan asked concerned. She was like a mother hen, always fussing over us and looking after us even though we didn't need to.

"I'm fine. I was just a little dizzy, that's all." I replied just as Peter walked in, in his pyjamas and dressing gown and put Lucy to bed.

"The sheets feel scratchy." Mumbled Lucy as Peter sat down on her bed.

"Wars don't last forever Lu; we'll be home before you know it." Susan smiled as she walked to the end of her bed.

"If home's still there." Edmund spoke as he walked in and sat down on the end of my bed. Lucy looked as if she was going to cry.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" Susan asked Edmund, giving him a look.

"Yes _Mum_." He replied sarcastically.

"Ed!" Peter shouted, giving Edmund a warning look. Obviously they were still angry at each other for something. _They'll sort it out, they are brothers after all._ I thought as I watch on, preferring to stay out of family matters. Peter turned back to Lucy.

"You saw outside, this place is huge! We can do whatever we want here."

"After our chores, of course." I added so that he wouldn't forget. When it came to chores, Peter always preferred to pretend that he didn't know he had any. I couldn't really blame him; I mean who would want to clean someone else's pants? I know Mrs Pevensie doesn't. Peter grimaced but put on a smile for Lucy.

"Tomorrow's going to be great. You'll see." He promised as he tucked Lucy in once more and kissed her forehead. "Night Lucy, see you in the morning."

And with that he and Edmund left after saying goodnight to us all. Susan got in to bed and blew out the candles, plunging us all in to darkness. _Lucy was right. The sheets are scratchy. _I thought as I relaxed and closed my eyes.

"Goodnight Susan, night Lucy." I called in to the dark from my pillow.

"Goodnight Alex!" they chorused back. And with that we all fell asleep dreaming of what tomorrow will bring.


	4. Lucy met a faun in a land called Narnia

_New and improved chapter. _

_Enjoy!_

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**Lucy met a faun in a land called Narnia through a magical wardrobe in the spare room**

I stared at the girl standing in front of me as she lifted up her blouse to show me her injuries. It was awful. There were bruises all over the girl's torso ranging from black and swollen on her sides, to grey and yellow across her front. She must've been in so much pain, just looking at her made me want to give her a hug and tell her she'll be alright. I sighed and watched as the girl looked downtrodden. Who was I kidding? The girl standing in front of me was me staring back through a sheet of reflective glass.

"That looks sore." A voice spoke from behind me. I turned around to see Peter standing sheepishly by the door, keeping his eyes averted to save my modesty. No wonder almost all the girls at St Finbar's were in love with him. He was the perfect gentleman.

"Only a little bit, other than that I hardly notice it." I shrugged and gently pulled my blouse down, careful that I didn't jostle my ribs too much. I turned back to him still standing in the same spot as before. I chuckled. "You _can_ come in you know Pete, I don't bite."

Peter walked in slowly with his hands behind his back. He looked at me as if he had just been told that his pet had died or if Lucy had just gone to hospital. I paused. _She hasn't gone to hospital...has she? _

"I'm sorry. I must have moved your ribs too much when I pulled you back in to the cart when we were in the village." He said sadly, his bright blue eyes full of remorse. I sighed and walked over giving him a hug. He hugged back gently, aware of the bruises on my ribs.

"It's fine Pete. If you hadn't pulled me back in to the cart I would be in a worse position than I am in now." I said in to his chest. "Besides, it's not your fault. Blame Hitler and his love for dropping bombs on cities." Peter chuckled a little before I pulled away.

"So...what's for breakfast?" I asked with a smile. Peter rolled his eyes and gave me a warm smile.

"Ivy's cooking something in the kitchen for breakfast but I've got to wake up Ed." He said but then leaned in as if he was going to tell me a secret and whispered, "I let him have a lie in, what with the journey and everything."

"I'll help you if you want. I know how much of a pain he is in the morning. He's worse than you!" I said cheekily, earning a childish pout and a tap on the top of my head from Peter. Peter had always compared me a little to Edmund and Lucy, both being so small and being a pain in the backside at times. Peter nodded then led me out of the room and down a grand hallway. I still had no idea where everything was since the first I had been here I was nearly unconscious. As Peter and I walked down the hallway, I stared in awe at all of the beautiful paintings of cottages and at all of the polished silver suits of armour that reminded me of medieval knights.

Peter stopped outside of a door that must have been his and Edmund's room. We crept in to the bedroom and I looked around staring at the sheer size of it. There was a good amount of space between Edmund and Peter's beds so that when they were fighting they would be far enough away from each other. I stifled a laugh as I saw Edmund sleeping. Well, how he could be sleeping like _that_ I have no idea. Edmund had somehow managed to sleep upside down in his bed with head hanging off the edge with his mouth hanging open and his hair brushing the carpet lightly every time he breathed. He just looked so funny!

I suddenly got an idea.

"Alright I'll wake him up. You get ready to catch him." I whispered to Peter then knelt down by Edmund's head. Peter knelt down by the side of Edmund with his arms out ready to catch Edmund if he should fall. I leaned in close to Edmund's ear and smiled.

"Edmund...Wake up...Ed...Surely you don't want girl cooties do you?" I whispered, glaring playfully at Peter as he struggled to keep quiet. His whole body was shaking with stifled laughs. I looked back at Edmund and grinned slightly at what I was going to do. "Alright Edmund...but you really gave me no choice..."

With that I firmly placed a friendly kiss on his cheek. I could hear Peter sniggering as Edmund woke up groggily only to find me kissing his cheek. His eyes went wide as he tried to move away. I moved out of the way just in time for Edmund to jump and fall out of his bed landing on the floor, completely missing Peter's arms.

"Alex! What did you do that for? You've infected me!" he shouted angrily as he furiously rubbed his cheek with his sleeve, turning it bright red. Peter and I were rolling on our backs in fits of laughter at the hilarity of it all.

"Sorry! Breakfast is ready by the way." I gasped after I calmed down and I stood up. Peter and I staggered out of the room like two drunkards while giggling like madmen, leaving a furious Edmund to get dressed in peace.

We walked down the stairs and in to a large room with wooden floorboards and strong stone walls. There was a table in the middle of the room that was covered in what looked like pastry dough and flour. I looked over to Peter and saw that he was walking over to a large oven that was near the dining room door which had a large pot on it. A sweet smelling smell wafted up my nose and made my mouth water. I could smell a mixture of spices coming from the pot. Cinnamon, ginger, aniseed, nutmeg and many other spices that I had never smelt before, but it smelt delicious altogether. Peter picked up a wooden spoon and just as he was about to dip it in to the pot to taste, Ivy bustled in and slapped Peter's away.

"Oh no you don't, boyo. You can go and set the table with your sister. Go on." She said firmly, giving Peter a stern look. Peter sighed and dipped his head before he did what he was told. I had only just realised that Ivy only came up to Peter's chest, but I suppose Peter was tall for his age. He was only a few inches taller than Mrs Pevensie and she was five-foot-seven! Ivy turned to me and smiled.

"Oh good you're up! How are you feelin'?" she asked cheerfully as she turned to the stove and began stirring whatever was in the pot.

"I'm feeling a lot better, thank you." I replied politely as Ivy turned back and gave me a toothy smile.

"Oh that's very good! I'll be sure to tell Betty when she's finished attending to the Professor. Now, can you go help set the table?" Ivy said before turning down the heat on the stove. I nodded before walking through, in to the dining room. The dining room was about an average size. Just big enough to fit a set of drawers for plates, bowls and cutlery as well as a table large enough to fit nine people. Susan and Peter were busy putting a white tablecloth on the wooden. I decided to get the bowls and cutlery and lay them on the table.

"Good morning Alex. Did you sleep well last night?" Susan asked, covering her mouth with her hand as she stifled a yawn.

"Surprisingly well, thank you Susan." I lied, concentrating that I didn't drop any bowls. Every time I lied about something my hands would shake and I would drop whatever I was holding. The truth was I had another nightmare last night. I had dreamt that I was alone in a vast field of heather and wildflowers. It was beautiful to see, there were so many colours. The fine rainbow colours of the wildflowers, the soft beige of the heather and the bright blue and white of the sky and the wispy clouds. I had never seen the sky so blue before! Normally it was ruined by dark rain clouds and German planes tearing across the sky. I would give anything to see this amount of peace and colour for the rest of my life. I walked through the field running my hands gently along the heather feeling it tickle my palms until I came across a wooden fence that seemed to be one hundred feet tall and stretched for miles. There was a gap in the fence just big enough for me to get through and I became curious. What was on the other side of the fence?

I crawled through the gap and stood up on the other side of the fence. There was a huge oak tree with golden leaves, so tall that it seemed to pierce the sky. A leaf fell from one of the branches and I watched as it swirled and twirled through the air before landing softly on my shoulder. I picked it up and stared at it before turning back to the tree. It was so huge that I felt an urge to climb it. I stepped on to the roots and started to climb the trunk. Suddenly everything began to change. The sky darkened and it started to rain with flashes of light across the sky. A thunderstorm had appeared out of nowhere right above the tree and me. I jumped off of the trunk and tried to run for cover but I tripped over the roots and my ribs broke out of place and I gasped in pain. A lightning bolt struck the base of the tree just inches from where I was lying. I rolled over on to my back and looked up at the tree in horror as it began to lean forward towards me. I through my arms up in vain to protect myself before the tree fell on top of me.

That was the time I woke up, just as the trunk landed on me. I shuddered. My dreams had never been like that before; they were always about my mother and going through a gate. I was so confused. What was that dream about? What was it supposed to mean?

"Alex? Are you alright?" Peter asked me, bringing me abruptly out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, I was just thinking." I muttered just as Lucy skipped in to the dining room with a wide grin. She was always a morning person.

"Morning!" she chirped and sat down at the table. Peter greeted her and sat next to her at the table. I sat opposite Peter whilst Susan sat on the end next to him.

"What are you so happy about this morning?" he asked his little sister with a bemused look on his face. She smiled and bounced on the seat, bubbling with energy.

"I can't wait to explore! This is the biggest house I've ever been in." She exclaimed just as Ivy walked in carrying the large pot that was on the stove in her oven-mitted hands and a silver ladle swinging on the handle.

"Not until you finished your chores lass. But don't worry; they won't be too much today. As soon as you've finished them _then _you can play." Ivy smiled at the little girl then asked Susan to pass her a bowl. Edmund walked sleepily in to the room and plopped himself down next to me, opposite Lucy.

"Oh!It's nice of you to join us, lad." Ivy chided as she handed a filled bowl back to Susan, which she passed down to Lucy. "Come on pass me your bowl." She held her hand out as Edmund gave her his bowl.

"Oh come on Ed, cheer up!" Peter said as he punched Ed playfully in the arm. Ed threw him a filthy look and turned his attention to the filled bowl that Ivy gave him.

"Yeah Ed, we only have a little bit to do for our chores then we have nothing to do for the rest of the day! Isn't that great?" I smiled at him and watched as he eyed his breakfast.

"What's this?" Edmund said snootily as he dipped a spoon in to the bowl and lifted it up. There was a white lumpy mixture in it that had a little sprinkle of something brown on it.

"Spiced porridge, sorry but there was no sugar. That's one thing I'll have to get in the village." She said before taking my bowl and filled it with porridge. Edmund tipped his spoon and watched it flop back in to the bowl with a splat.

"Couldn't I have toast instead?" he asked looking hopefully back at Ivy. It suddenly went silent as she narrowed her eyes slightly back at him. _Uh oh, I would not like to be Ed right now._ I thought as I focused my attention on my breakfast and ate in silence. It really wasn't that bad. A bit too much on the cinnamon but otherwise it tasted nice. I don't see why Ed was complaining so much.

"No, you will eat what you are given young man. You can't be picky with rations in the middle of a war. Either you eat that or you go hungry." Ivy fumed as she took Peter's bowl and angrily plopped a ladle of porridge in to it before thrusting it back to Peter. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to give the Professor his breakfast."

With that she stormed out of the room and left us in silence. Edmund grumbled and turned to play with his food.

"Edmund stop playing with your food." Susan chided as she ate her food with a grimace. She had always hated porridge but she was polite enough to eat it when she was told. Edmund glared at her and continued to stir his porridge with his spoon.

"It's not that bad, honest. Just try some." I said quietly as Susan eyed him from her seat. Edmund turned his glare on to me.

"I still haven't forgiven you for this morning you know." He snapped at me and I gulped. This could only mean that sometime today he was going to get his revenge on me. My mind went back to times when this had happened before and I shuddered at the memories.

"I said I was sorry and it was just a joke." I mumbled, turning back to my porridge.

"What happened this morning?" Lucy asked in her own oblivious childlike way. I glanced up to see Edmund stare disgustedly at his bowl and I let out a sigh of relief. _So much for wanting to be friends again, _I thought as I returned my attention back to my breakfast.

"Well, Alex helped me wake Ed up this morning and decided to give him a nice wake up call." Peter snickered slightly and I blushed.

"Nice! She kissed me and gave me cooties!" he exclaimed and pointed at me. Susan stared at me and raised one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows.

"Like I said it was a joke!" I muttered as my cheeks turned as red as beetroots. It meant nothing. It was just a friendly kiss on the cheek between friends. We were practically brother and sister in any case since we had known each other since birth. It was just an idiotic idea that popped in to my head and I used it without even thinking about it. It was nothing. Before Susan had a chance to question Ivy walked back in to the room followed by Margaret and Betty.

Breakfast was a quiet event and we all finished quickly so that we could start our chores and get them over and done with. Unfortunately before we were allowed to go, Betty had told us all to go in to the kitchen and line up. Susan had latched on to my arm so she could stand next to me in the line and I couldn't help but feel like that was a bad thing. The only good thing is the Edmund had decided to stand on the other side of Susan whilst Peter and Lucy stood on my other side.

"Alex, why did you kiss Edmund? Do you fancy him?" Susan began interrogating, a small sly grin appearing on her face and I inwardly groaned. I knew it was a bad idea.

"I told you it was nothing! It was just a joke!" I exclaimed just as Betty, Margaret and Ivy walked through the door.

"Stop talking." Betty suddenly ordered as she hobbled towards the table in the middle of the room whilst Ivy swiftly walking to one of the kitchen cupboards and pulled out a yellow bottle before handing it to Betty. "Now, all of you are going to have a spoonful of this and you are going to swallow it. Now you young man, come here." She pointed to Peter and he grudgingly step forward. Margaret opened the bottle and poured it in to a fairly large desert spoon before forcing it in to Peter's mouth.

I thought he was going to be sick as he started retching, but then swallowed the horrible yellow gloop, grimacing all the while. He shook his head and then it was Lucy's turn. She was a little more grown up about it all but even she looked sick. Then it was my turn. As I stepped forward I eyed the spoon and the yellow mixture that was being poured in to it. As she held the spoon out in front of my mouth I swore I saw the mixture move as if it was alive. I smelt it slightly and felt sick already; it smelt of old fermented fish guts and saltwater.

Cod liver oil.

"Come on girl, just open your mouth and then swallow it." Margaret coaxed impatiently as she forced the disgusting fishy substance to my lips. I could taste it already even though my mouth was shut and let me tell you, I honestly felt sorry for the fish that had to give up their guts for _this._

"Open your mouth." Betty ordered and I had a very strong urge to shake my head. But the better, more polite side of my brain got the better of me and opened my mouth letting Margaret force the oil in my mouth and shutting my mouth after pulling the spoon out. All I could taste was fish as I felt the oil slide around my mouth making sure that my mouth had a lasting taste of it all. I tried to swallow it but it wouldn't slide to the back of my throat.

"Swallow! You will swallow it!" Margaret demanded as the oil continued to slide over my tongue. My eyes began to water and my stomach tightened as I began to retch. One of my hands grabbed hold of the table as I bent over and held on to my stomach. My body began to shake as I tried to swallow but suddenly I felt something force its way up my throat. I had to get rid of this oil _now. _I stumbled to the sink behind Susan ignoring the orders and the angry shouts from Betty and Margaret, before spitting it out. Tears began to fall as I felt horribly sick.

Out of the corner of my eyes I could see Susan and Edmund pale and turn away, preferring not to look at me throwing up my breakfast whereas Peter was rubbing my back and pulling my hair out of my face before sitting me down gently on the floor. Lucy handed me a glass of water that Ivy had made and I took a sip to try and get rid of the taste.

"What did we say about swallowing it?" Betty huffed before beckoning Susan forward to give her a spoonful. She was a little apprehensive but did as she was told. After a few hours, we had all been given some cod liver oil (this time I had succeeded in swallowing it instead of throwing it up) and we had finished our chores. Ivy let us explore the grounds as long as we don't get our shoes dirty and that we wiped our shoes on the way back in. So here we are now, in the back garden taking a stroll in the sunshine. Well, sunshine is the closest thing I could think of to what it was. There were dark rainclouds rolling across the sky towards us and I began wishing that the sky from my dream was here instead of the sky we've got now.

"What's that?" Susan asked bringing me out of my thoughts, as she pointed to something at the bottom of the garden. I stared at the place she was pointing at and gasped. There was a scorched tree stump just a few feet away from the fence that surrounded the garden. We hurried over to it and stared in awe at it. From what I could guess, this was an oak tree and a big one too.

"What do you think happened to it?" Edmund asked as he touched the blackened bark of the trunk.

"Lightning...it got struck by lightning." I said absent-mindedly before I paused.

"How would you know that?" Peter said eyeing me suspiciously, before I gave him a shrug.

"I must have heard Ivy talking about it or something..." I muttered when suddenly I felt a cold drop of water splash on my cheekbone. I touched my cheek just as more drops of water started to fall. "Great, come on. We'd better get inside or the Macready will skin us alive."

We grumbled and ran inside just as it was about to bucket down with rain. We then decided that since it was raining we should go to the recreational room, which in other words was a room with a sofa and armchair, an old wooden coffee table and a large bookshelf stacked with about fifty books. Peter and Edmund almost had another fight as they had both wanted to sit in the chair, but thankfully one didn't occur and Edmund decided to take his frustration out on the underside of the coffee table with a spare screwdriver that was lying underneath the sofa. Susan had found a huge dictionary and plonked herself on the sofa searching through the pages for any words that she didn't know. Me and Lucy however, sat on the windowsill and stared out at the rain with glum expressions on our faces. Lucy was the most upset out of all of us. She had been so excited to go outside this morning at breakfast, but now we were stuck inside because of the rain. _Why is it always England that gets rain?_ I thought sulkily as I turned my attention to the others.

"Come on Peter, Gastro vascular." Susan sighed as she quizzed Peter. _Oh no, not the dictionary game again!_ I groaned inwardly as I watched. Back in London, when our fathers had still been home, Mr Pevensie came up with the dictionary game for Susan to play so that she could play and learn at the same time. She would go on for days, popping up out of nowhere and asked us what a word meant. To be honest, the only thing we did learn was how to hide the dictionary better so that Susan couldn't find it.

"Is it Latin?" he asked in a very bored voice. Edmund sat up from underneath the table to see what was going on and probably so that he could give the table a break.

"Yes." Susan replied as she stared at the page in front of her.

"Is it Latin for _worst game ever invented_?" Edmund snickered causing me and Peter to grin and chuckle a little. Susan shot a look at me and I raised my hands in defence.

"He's got a fair point Su." I giggled then leant in close to the boys. "It looks like that's another dictionary to stick on the top cupboard then." Susan huffed and slammed the large book close just as Lucy tiptoed silently towards us and looked at Peter pleadingly.

"We could hide and seek." She asked hopefully.

"But we're already having _so much fun!_" he replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes at Susan, who shot him a glare.

"Oh come on Peter please!" she whined and pulled on Peter's sleeve before giving him the look that shatters the mature walls of all big brothers. The puppy-eye look. Lucy, in my opinion is a genius and to date the only one who has Peter wrapped around her little ten-year-old finger. "Pretty please!" Peter looked at the opposite way to Lucy but then, as if his head was being attracted by an invisible magnet, turned to his baby sister and caved.

"One, two, three..." he sighed and started to count as Lucy's face lit up like a firework and ran to hide. Edmund cried out in outrage but then ran out of the room to go hide. I quickly followed but split up at the staircase in the main foyer. I ran up the stairs and along a corridor that no one had been down. I searched everywhere for a good spot to hide but they just weren't good enough. I ran down another corridor and then found a basket in the corner.

"Perfect!" I whispered to myself as I hurried over to the basket lifting up the lid.

"Hey! Find your own spot Alex!" Susan hissed as I lifted the lid. I huffed and closed the lid, running down another corridor until I found a suit of armour. Behind it was a long red draping curtain which I hid behind and peeked around the edge, keeping an eye out for Peter in case he came around the corner. Not long after I had hidden, Edmund and Lucy around the corner and straight to the drapes opposite me. I stayed quiet and watched as Edmund beat Lucy to the hiding space.

"I was here first!" he sneered at her before she huffed and ran to find another place to hide. I shuffled my feet and hid behind the curtain more as I heard footsteps in the distance.

"Alex, is that you?" Edmund whispered from across the hallway. _Shoot! He found me!_ I thought as I glared at him through the curtain.

"Yes, now shut up and hide! Peter's coming!" I hissed back at him as I heard the footsteps getting louder. He was almost near us, just at the end of the corridor. He cautiously walked up the corridor as if something was going to jump out at him when suddenly –

"It's alright! I'm back, I'm alright!" Lucy shouted as she ran around the corner near us. I jumped slightly and held on to the curtain tightly, making sure it was all around me.

"Shut up, he's coming!" Edmund hissed at her as Peter came around the corner. I heard Edmund huff and come out of his hiding place. I didn't dare sneak a peek; there was still every chance he won't find me.

"There you are. You know, I don't think you two have quite got the idea of this game." Peter chuckled from the other side of the curtain.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Alex is only hiding there behind the curtain." Edmund said snootily as suddenly the curtain was pulled away revealing where I was hiding. I huffed and gave Edmund a glare. _Why did he always have to spoil the game if he didn't win?_ I thought, remembering back to the past games we had played together and how he would throw a tantrum every time he lost.

"Does this mean I win?" Susan smiled happily as she hurried around the corner to join us. Lucy stared at us all with a confused look on her face.

"I don't think Lucy wants to play anymore." Peter told Susan with a sad, concerned expression on his face.

"Weren't you wondering where I was?" Lucy asked looking slightly upset. Edmund scoffed and sneered at her.

"That's the point. That's why he was _seeking _you!" he said as if he was speaking to her like she was a baby instead of a ten year old.

"But...I've been gone for hours." She said quietly. Peter, Susan and Edmund exchanged a look between them whilst I stared at her in surprise.

"Lu it's only been a few minutes, not hours." I said as gently as I could, so as to not seem condescending. She frowned and then grabbed Peter's hand and dragged him along the corridor after her.

"Come and see I'll prove it to you!" she called over her shoulder as she went. The rest of us followed behind, curious about what could have caused Lucy to be so sure about something. She led us down an empty corridor and in to an old dusty room. At the far end of the room was a grand wooden wardrobe with pictures carved in to the door as if it were a cave painting on a wall.

"Lucy it's just a wardrobe. What is so special about it?" asked Peter with a confused look on his face. Lucy stared back at him with an annoyed look.

"There's a magical land in the wardrobe and I met a faun called Mr Tumnus! And he's really nice! And there's snow and trees and a lamppost in the -"

"A lamppost?" I asked curiously, slowly heading over to look at the wardrobe more closely.

"Yes! And it's all in the wardrobe!" she said happily pointing towards the wooden door. Susan and Edmund walked forward to inspect it, Susan walking in to the wardrobe whilst Edmund went around the back. Susan knocked twice and Edmund replied. I crouched down by the side and stared at one of the pictures on the door. It was a picture of a grand tree with what looked like to little circles amongst the roots.

"Lucy, the only wood in here is the back of the wardrobe. And I'm pretty sure that fur coats aren't trees." Susan chided, sighing slightly at her baby sister's antics. Lucy stared back at her in disbelief.

"But it was there!" she said desperately trying to make us believe her.

"Stop it Lucy, we don't all have your imagination." Peter sighed sadly, turning to walk out of the room whilst Susan turned to join him.

"But I wasn't imagining!" she shouted back, causing her siblings to turn around and stare at her in surprise. Lucy wasn't really one for shouting even if she was angry.

"That's enough Lucy!" Susan told her off, very much reminding me of Mrs Pevensie shouting at Edmund.

"I'm telling the truth, why don't you believe me? I wouldn't lie about this!" she shouted, her voice wavering as her eyes began to well with tears.

"I believe you." Edmund piped up suddenly. I stared at him in surprise, as much as everyone else did.

"You do?" Lucy asked hopefully, smiling at her brother with wide eyes. Edmund looked around at us all as if he were on a stage.

"Yeah, didn't I tell you I found a football field in the bathroom cupboard?" he said smugly with a wide mocking grin pointed directly at Lucy. Lucy almost burst in to tears but I leapt to my feet and pulled her quickly in to a hug. Peter rounded on Edmund whilst Susan sighed at him.

"Oh, will you just stop. You just have to make everything worse don't you?" Peter said glaring at his little brother as I rub Lucy on the shoulder calming her down, just like Mrs Pevensie would do.

"It was just a joke!" Edmund said defensively.

"When are you going to learn to grow up?" Peter said looking at Edmund with a disappointed look on his face. Ed glared at Peter furiously. _Uh oh, not again..._I thought looking over Lucy's shoulder at them.

"Ed calm down, there's no use in getting in another fight." I said calmly but I was ignored as Edmund screamed in Peter's face.

"Shut up! You think you're Dad but you're NOT!"

Edmund angrily stormed out of the room leaving Peter looking quite shell-shocked. Susan glared at Peter.

"Well, that was nicely handled." And with that she hurried out of the room after Edmund. Lucy pulled away and walked over to Peter reaching out for her brother's hand.

"Peter, it really was there!" she tried one last time to convince him but he just turned away and let go of her hand.

"Susan's right Lucy. That's enough." Peter scolded her one last time before walking out of the room leaving her with me. Lucy turned to look hopefully at me.

"Please say you believe me Alex." She said teary-eyed. I sighed and beckoned her for a hug. I really didn't know what to say. Part of me told me not to but another part told me yes.

"I really don't know Lucy. Not that I'm saying you're lying Lucy, it's just...not very believable." I said quietly in her ear. She pulled away and stared at the wardrobe behind me.

"It was there." She said as if trying to convince herself. I decided to change the subject so that she wouldn't be even more upset.

"I'll tell you what, it's very beautiful don't you think?" I said staring back at the wardrobe in amazement.

"Oh indeed." She agreed with a smile as wide as her face. I smile along with her and stood up getting ready to lead her out of the room. I gave one last look at the wardrobe and it felt as if the world stopped as I stared at it. There was just something about it that was old and, dare I say it, magical. Maybe Lucy was right. Maybe she had found a magical land in the wardrobe.

_Don't be silly Alexandra. How can there be a land in a wardrobe?_ A voice in the back of my head spoke. Strangely enough, it sounded like my grandmother. I shook my head and then without another look, led Lucy out of the room shutting the door firmly behind me.


	5. Midnight is not a good time to wander

_New and improved chapter._

_Enjoy!_

_

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_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Chapter Four**

**Midnight is not a good time to wander**

I didn't know how I had gotten there but the only thought in my head was to run. I ran as fast as I could go through the freezing cold snow, desperate to get away from _her_ and her guard. I hid behind a large tree and began to breathe deeply, getting ragged gasps of air in to my system to calm my thudding heartbeat. Sweat was pouring from my forehead and I was tired. I wanted nothing more than to rest in a cosy, warm home with everyone I loved instead of out here in a dark forest, knee deep in snow and shivering in fear. I could hear snow crunching behind me and I froze. The crunching was getting louder and I could hear snuffling as if a horse was sniffing a bale of hay. It was one of her guards and they were extremely close to my hiding spot. I had two options. I could turn around and fight the guard, alerting the others to my hiding spot. Or I could bolt, alerting the guards to my spot and in no doubt be killed.

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" the guard taunted in a sing-song voice, as he drew closer to my tree. I had to make my decision now. Fight or bolt. _Fight_ or _bolt_?

_CREEAAAK!_

I snapped my head up at the noise to see a branch above me point straight down. _Traitor!_ I yelled in my head as I stared to run. A rough hairy hand clamped around my ankle tightly and I fell straight in to the snow letting out a small scream. The guard dragged me back by my ankle as I screamed and clawed at the snow all around me.

"Oh good, you've found her." I gasped as I was abruptly dragged to my feet, feeling every hair on my head pull on my scalp, a few hairs ripping out. I clamped my eyes shut in pain as I tried relentlessly to pull my hair out of the iron grip of the guard's hand.

"You know what to do." An ice-cold voice sneered. My eyes snapped open and I saw a flash of silver rip across my throat, feeling a warm liquid slip down my neck and down my throat. I tried to scream but it only came out as a gurgle as the liquid slipped down my throat as if it were honey. The last image I saw was the cold, pitiless black eyes of her as she touched the tip of my nose with her wand, laughing as she did. The pain was unbearable as I felt every cell in my body writhe as if in agony before freezing.

I screamed and screamed as I tried to get away from her, flailing my arms and kicking my legs. Something was covering my body and I couldn't escape from it.

"HELP! HELP!" I screamed as suddenly a light came on and I was enveloped in two warm, strong arms.

"Ssh, it's okay Alex. It was just a nightmare." Peter murmured in my ear soothingly as I trembled and clutched desperately on to Peter's shirt. Tears fell from my eyes as Susan sat on the other side of me and rubbed my back in gentle circles. Edmund sat on the bed opposite me next to Lucy who looked like she was going to collapse asleep. Ed stared at me with a frown as I cried but his eyes looked like they were worried.

"B-but it f-felt so real!" I stuttered out pulling away and looking at Peter with wide tearful eyes.

"They always do seem real Alex. That's what is so scary about them." Susan spoke gently as she continued to rub circles in to my back. I felt like a little kid being soothed by their mum and dad, only I didn't feel relaxed. Mrs Macready suddenly appeared in the doorway and glared at Peter and Edmund.

"Why aren't you all asleep? And what are you boys doing in here?" she snapped stepping aside and ordered the boys out of the room.

"But Alex had a nightmare! We were just seeing if she was alright." Edmund protested, stubbornly remaining where he was. I smiled to myself reluctantly loosening my grip Peter. I didn't want them to get in to trouble because of me. Mrs Macready shot a look at Edmund before turning to me with her lips pursed and her arms crossed her front. She was dressed in a long pink nightgown and a matching dressing gown. She also had her hair down instead of her usual tight bun at the back of her head.

"Well, she looks alright now." She said offhandedly, before giving me a stern look. "Honestly, you should be grown up enough to not be scared of childish nightmares by now."

I opened my mouth to retort something back to her but I shut it quickly and tried to hold back a new wave of tears that were threatening to spill. I let go of Peter and nudge him to go. He gave me a look that probably meant "are you sure?" I nodded and gave him another nudge, staring down at my lap. With one last hug Peter and Edmund reluctantly left with Mrs Macready following behind closing the door shut behind her. Susan stood up and put Lucy back to bed before hopping in to her own bed and switching the lights off.

"Susan?" I asked quietly hopefully not waking Lucy up.

"Yes Alex? What's wrong?" she replied worriedly, sitting up in her bed.

"Are you supposed to die in dreams?" I whispered unsure whether I was right. I may be fourteen years old, almost fifteen, and I may be one of the most mature in my class but I still felt like a child. I heard Susan turn over in her bed to face before she sat up to in her bed.

"No, if you die in a dream you should be dead in reality too. Why?" she said uneasily as if figuring out what I was thinking about.

"Nothing...I'll see you in the morning." I mumbled before turning to the wall. I didn't go to sleep though, I was too wide awake. That nightmare had been the worst I've ever had even worse than the one about the tree. But what disturbed me the most was the fact that I wasn't dead now. I definitely know I had died in the dream, I could remember it vividly. I could even feel a thin line of pain right across my throat, but that must've been because I was screaming.

After what felt like hours I got up out of bed and walked out of our room. Silently I crept down the stairs being careful of any squeaky steps before walking in to the kitchen to get a glass of milk. Normally I would heat it up but I didn't want to draw any attention to myself seeing as I shouldn't be up at this hour. After I finished my milk I headed back up to go to bed when suddenly I saw Edmund and Lucy run excitedly in to Peter's room.

"Peter! Peter! It's there, it's really there!" Lucy shouted happily from in the room. _Oh no, not again!_ I thought as I ran after them in to the room. Lucy was jumping on Peter's bed whilst hitting in arm like a bongo drum to wake him up. Peter groaned and turned over just as Susan came in.

"Lucy, what are you doing up? What are you talking about?" he said wiping his eyes of sleep, whilst tiredly sitting up.

"Narnia! It's in the wardrobe like I told you!" she said excitedly. Susan walked over to Lucy and wrapped her arms around the little girl's shoulders.

"Oh Lucy, you must've been dreaming." She said gently. Lucy shook her head and stood up.

"I wasn't! I saw Mr Tumnus again and this time, Edmund went too!" she said proudly as we all turned to Edmund in surprise.

"You...saw the faun?" Peter asked him with a raised eyebrow. Edmund shook his head, feeling sheepish under all our gazes. _Hold up, sheepish? Edmund may be a lot of things but sheepish is not one of them._ I thought, eyeing Ed suspiciously.

"Well, he didn't exactly go there with me. He..." Lucy paused and turned to her brother with a frown. "What were you doing Edmund?"

Edmund didn't meet Lucy's eyes instead he looked at Peter. "I was just playing along." Lucy gasped and looked as if she was going to burst in to tears. "I'm sorry Peter, I shouldn't have encouraged her. You know how little kids are...they just don't know when to stop pretending."

Ed turned back to Lucy and sneered at her, making Lucy sniffle and run out of the room in tears. With sighs of frustration Susan and Peter followed her, but not before Peter gave Edmund a forceful shove on to his bed. Silence fell in the room as I stayed behind staring at Ed with narrowed eyes. Edmund huffed and sat up on his bed staring at his hands like a condemned man. _Gotcha. _I thought as my suspicions came true. I crossed my arms and continued to stare at him, when he slowly began to realise I was still there. He looked up at me before his eyebrows furrowed at my posture.

"What?" he huffed, annoyed at my silence. He stood up and crossed his arms looking at me with an annoyed look on his face. I strolled over to him still silent looking at his feet and then his dressing gown before looking at the corner of his mouth. _Uh huh, thought so..._

"Is that icing sugar I see on your mouth?" I asked innocently, watching him fidget under my gaze.

"No." He mumbled as he quickly wiped his mouth.

"Your breath smells of rose. You've been eating Turkish Delight haven't you?" I said narrowing my eyes at him. After so many years of being friends, I had found out that Edmund's favourite sweet in the whole world is Turkish delight. And when you feed numerous cats Turkish delight, you find out that is smells of rose and sugar.

"So what? I find some in the shopping bags Ivy brought back form the village." He said defensively. I sighed and stared at Edmund in disappointment.

"Ivy didn't get any Turkish Delight. I helped her unpack after we found the wardrobe. In fact, all she got was sugar, teabags and the Professor's medication." I said looking Ed in the eye. His eyes flickered slightly, looking at the ground. "Tell me Ed, if you didn't go to Narnia, then why are your slippers wet?"

Edmund glanced down at his feet, watching as he wiggled his toes in his sodden shoes which made horrible squelchy noises. His dressing gown was slightly damp too and there were small specks of white on it. If I squinted I could see snowflakes melting in to the fabric.

"Uh...um." he mumbled but then fell silent before looking up at me angrily. "What would you know? You don't know me, you're not even family! So stop being nosy and leave me alone! Get out!"

Edmund grabbed my forearms suddenly before pushing me out of the room, slamming the door in my face. I stood there shocked and slightly hurt. We were like family, we were brought up together. And I wasn't nosy at all, so that was a lie! _Maybe I shouldn't have questioned him so much._ I thought guiltily as I turned away to look for the others but stopped. _I really wasn't part of their family, maybe I should leave them to deal with their family matters._ With that I turned to the girl's bedroom and got in to bed. I turned to look at the alarm clock on the little desk at the side of my bed. It was exactly midnight. I sighed and turned over to face the wall, feeling a few tears fall down my face.

I still couldn't go to sleep, afraid that I would have that nightmare again. That was the last thing I needed right now. Half an hour later, Susan and Lucy walked quietly in to the room and got in to bed.

"Susan, why is Edmund being so horrid? He was never like this before." Lucy sniffled. She must have been crying a lot and was still upset about Edmund lying to her.

"He's just finding it hard to cope with Dad gone. You know how close he was to him." Susan sighed, sounding defeated.

"Well, he's not just the only one finding it hard." Lucy huffed. _Don't we all know it, Lu._ I thought.

"I know Lucy. But you know Ed, he'll get over it. You'll see." Susan said, trying to cheer her up so she would go back to sleep.

"What about Alex? Do you think she's coping?" Lucy asked suddenly and I felt eyes on the back of my head. _Why were they talking about me?_

"I don't think so Lu. I know she had a nightmare last night, but she didn't tell me about it this morning when I asked her about it." Susan said quietly. I frowned.

"You mean she's lying to us too?" Lucy whispered.

"No, just not telling us everything. I knew we should have taken her in when Mr Portentia left for the war." Susan moaned. _What is she talking about?_ I thought, feeling my curiosity spike.

"Ssh! Mummy said we shouldn't talk about that." Lucy hushed Susan. _No! Keep talking! What about my Dad? What shouldn't you talk about?_ I pleaded in my head.

"Alright, come on Lucy, let's go to sleep." Susan sighed before kissing her little sister on the forehead. Silence fell in the dark room and I was frustrated. What were they talking about? Why were they talking about my Dad? What weren't they allowed to tell me?

I fell in to a restless sleep, my thoughts on everything that I had heard. Something told me that I wasn't the only one keeping secrets. I decided from then, that no matter what, I was going to find out what they were keeping from me. I held my locket that lay on the pillow next to me, chained safely around my neck and closed my eyes, falling in to a deep sleep undisturbed by scary black eyes or by niggling paranoid thoughts in the back of my head.


	6. Playing cricket outside

_New and improved chapter._

_Enjoy!_

_

* * *

_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Chapter Five**

**Playing cricket outside leads to running around inside.**

"I am so sorry dear." Betty consoled me, patting me on the shoulder sympathetically as my eyes filled with tears. I stared at the piece of paper in my hands feeling as though an avalanche of rocks were crashing down on top of me, crushing me underneath. A lone tear fell down my cheek and I hastily wiped it away before remembering that the Pevensies weren't in the room. I didn't want them to worry about me anymore and think that I'm not coping. I had to stay strong and focus on stopping my tears from falling.

I suppose I should explain why I was crying over a piece of paper early in the morning during breakfast, with Betty looking at me sympathetically and rubbing soothing circles on my shoulder. The piece of paper in my hand was in fact a letter that was telling me some very bad news. Maybe you should read it for yourself because if I read it again then Susan and Lucy would definitely have reason to worry about me.

_Dear Miss Portentia,_

_We are sorry to be writing this as I'm sure you have already heard this, but your grandmother Ms. Edith Portentia, has unfortunately died in hospital due to her being so ill. The doctors think that she may have died because of a chest infection. As I am sure you know your grandmother has been suffering from Bronchitis for a very long period of time. We also believe that she had breathed in some smoke due to her house catching on fire during one of the air raids. _

_We understand that this may be very hard for you, but evidence has come to light that you now have no guardian to look after you so I am afraid that you will have to live and Johansson's care home in Chiswick, London when the war is over and when you are brought back from the countryside. _

_We are so sorry for your loss. Long live the King. God bless Winston Churchill._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Doctor John Baxter._

Hot, heavy tears spilled over my eyes and down my cheeks as I mourned my poor grandmother. I don't know what I'm going to do without her. She was always there for me, ever since I could remember. I could remember her warm smile and tight bear hugs, her sparkling blue eyes that were still full of life and the warm glow that she always seemed to have around her. I could even remember her smell! Soap and rose. (I know that's a weird smell to remember but that's my grandmother.) She was the closest relative I had...apart from my Dad of course.

"Do you wish to go back in to the dining room to finish your breakfast?" Betty asked quietly, making me jump slightly. I had forgotten she was there. I turned to look at her beside me and another wave of tears flooded from my eyes like waterfalls. Betty looked exactly like her. I sobbed in to her shoulder while she hugged me. It felt good to be hugged by her but it wasn't great. It just wasn't the same, she wasn't my grandmother.

"Alright dear, why don't you go outside and sit by the tree? Be alone for a while." She suggested as she pulled away. I nodded and walked outside in to the garden and sat by a large tree with plenty of shade. For once it was a sunny day, but the letter had just ruined my excitement for the day. Don't you just hate it when it does that? I stayed there for what felt like hours on my own, sobbing on to my knees. I could remember a time when my grandmother had put me to bed and read a story from my _Greek myths _book. She told me the story of Heracles birth. You know the story about where the Greek goddess Hera, had sent two snakes to kill Heracles in his crib. But being a demigod, Heracles caught the snakes and strangled them being they could hurt him. Grandmother would read me that story every night to get me to sleep. It was her favourite story.

"Alex? Are you alright?" asked a concerned voice suddenly, making me jump and wipe my tears away hastily. I looked up to see the owner of the voice and then scowled.

"Why would you care Edmund? I'm not _family _am I?" I sniffled turning away from him and wiping my dribbling, snotty nose on my sleeve. I felt him sit next to me in the shade.

"I didn't really mean it. I was just angry." He tried to explain but it might as well have fell on deaf ears. I didn't care about what his excuse was. "You're my friend; I want to know what's upsetting you."

I turned to him with a tearful glare. "If I was your friend then you wouldn't have said all of those horrid things to me last night." I stood up and started to walk away but Ed grabbed my wrist and scrambled up too.

"Okay, I'm sorry for saying those things to you! There I've apologised!" Ed said heatedly, letting go of my wrist and pointed a stubby finger at my nose threateningly. "But that was all because you gave me the cuties! So really you're quite lucky that you – OW!"

I didn't let him finish his sentence because at the time I slapped him across his cheek, leaving a bright red handprint and a very shocked expression on his face. "That is not an apology! Stop being so childish and grow up! And for your information I wasn't crying about you! My grandmother's just died you bint! And I didn't even know and I-I'm s-stuck here so I c-can't see her and – and..."

Tears fell from my eyes as I started to cry uncontrollably in to my hands, dragging up ragged sobs from my chest and feeling my nose dripping like a tap. Ed stood frozen in shock as he watched me cry, not really sure what to do. None of the Pevensies had ever seen me cry, not even when I had hurt myself or had fallen over. I heard footsteps hurry over to us and I was wrapped in a hug.

"Ed what did you do now? What did you say to Alex?" Peter scolded as I realised that Susan was hugging me whilst Lucy was standing beside me with my _Greek Myths _book. I cried on to Susan's shoulder whilst Peter glared at Edmund.

"I just said sorry to her for the argument we had last night!" Edmund protested jabbing his finger at me.

"Then why is she crying?" Peter hissed at him. I pulled away from Susan and tugged on Peter's sleeve, pulling him away from Edmund so that they wouldn't start a fight. Peter raised an eyebrow at me but didn't resist my tugging.

"The reason why I'm crying is because...because..." I whispered but trailed off, hearing my voice stop. I couldn't continue. Edmund looked sympathetically before speaking.

"Her grandmother died." He said quietly as if I would just burst out crying if I heard the news again. Peter immediately felt guilty and couldn't look at me, Susan gasped and wrapped me in another hug that I didn't want and Lucy stared disbelievingly at me, her eyes welling in tears.

"Not Granny Pea!" She exclaimed, her eyes filling up with tears too and a sad look appeared on her small face. Like I was like part of the Pevensies family, they were part of mine. We used to go around to my grandmother's house for tea every Sunday before she started to get sick and before the war had started. She had gotten the name "Granny Pea" when she had served up homemade pea soup and bread for tea one Sunday evening, when Lucy sneezed just when Grandmother placed her bowl in front of her and somehow knocked it all over Grandmother's skirt. That and the fact that her surname began with the letter "P".

"Oh Alex, I'm so sorry to hear that." Susan said, giving me her condolences. I nodded and smiled back a little before walking over to the tree and sitting down again. Lucy followed and sat down beside me hugging me whilst putting my book on our laps, flicking the pages to the middle and started to read. I put my head back and leaned against the trunk of the tree wiping my eyes before closing them. I would give anything to just distract myself right now. I didn't do too well with grief. The only other time I had ever experienced grief was when my granddad died. I was really young then so I didn't really know how he died, but I could remember standing beside his deathbed as he spoke to my father and grandmother who were sobbing quietly. My granddad had turned to me and Dad picked me up and sat me on the side of his bed, grabbing hold of his hand as I sat beside him. He had smiled at me and squeezed my hand before taking in a deep breath and closing his eyes. When he exhaled, he told us that he loved us all and then smiled. I shook my head, feeling tears prick at the back of my eyes.

"Who's up for a game of cricket? I've brought the equipment out already." Peter called over his shoulder as he walked towards the front door of the huge house and picking up a cricket bat and ball as well as the stumps and creases before heading over to an open patch of grass to set it up. I stayed out of the game, preferring to stay in the shade as it was starting to get warm and I would most likely burn like a lobster because of my pale skin. In the end Susan and Edmund decided to play cricket whilst Lucy and I sat in the shade and read my book.

A few hours passed by and it was around midday. Peter, Edmund and Susan had been playing cricket for three hours already and Lucy had read almost read half of my book. The sun was directly above me in the sky, warming up the damp grass.

"Peter winds up, bowls and takes yet another wicket!" Peter grinned as he threw the bowl towards the cricket bat only to have it curve slightly and hit Edmund hard in the leg.

"Ow!" Ed hissed rubbing the side of his thigh furiously. "That hurt!"

"Whoops! Wake up Dolly Daydream." laughed Peter, earning a smile off Lucy and a small chuckle from Susan. I remained silent, honestly not finding anything funny about being hit in the leg with a hard cricket ball.

"Why can't we play hide and seek again?" Ed whined as Peter strolled forward to retrieve the ball and get ready to bowl again. I frowned slightly. _Since when did Edmund like playing hide and seek?_ I thought but then shrugged. It wasn't really my place to wonder what on Earth is going through Ed's mind.

"I thought you said it was kid's game." Peter drawled as he walked back to the pitching spot.

"Besides, we could all use the fresh air." piped in Susan as she got ready to catch the ball again. Edmund rounded on his older sister.

"It's not like there isn't air inside." He sneered at her, earning a glare from her. Even though I wasn't that happy with Ed's attitude at the moment, I couldn't help but think he had a fair point. I shook my head trying to rid my face of the small smile that was trying to take over and turned my attention back to the book on my lap, glancing at the game from the corner of my eye every so often.

"Are you ready?" Peter asked impatiently, dusting away any dirt on the cricket ball in his hands. Edmund hit the ground with his bat and narrowed his eyes at Peter determinedly.

"Are you?" he replied in a challenging voice. A shiver ran up my spine as I looked up at Edmund. I couldn't help but feel like when he grew older, he was going to be very intimidating. Just the look Ed was giving Pete at the moment was enough to make me wish I could shrink further in to the shade of the tree. Peter jogged forward, wound up and sent the cricket ball flying through the air towards Ed. Edmund gripped the bat and swung.

_SMACK!_

The cricket ball sailed through the air towards the house and directly at the second floor window with a loud _SMASH! _We fell silent with our jaws wide open.

"Uh oh..." I whispered as everyone stood up and sprinted in to the house. I followed behind carrying my book close to my chest. We hurried up the stairs and down the corridor until we reached a room filled with shelves of books, paintings and expensive suits of armour. I gulped as I cast my eyes on the mess in the room. One of the suits of armour was scattered across the floor, distinctly reminding me of the marionette clown statue that I had knocked over in the middle of the night when the bombs were falling on London.

"Oh well done Ed!" Peter exclaimed, glaring at his little brother. The rest of us began to panic slightly as Peter and Ed glared at each other. Did the Professor hear us? What would he do when he found one of his expensive suits of armour in pieces on the floor? Would he be angry?

"You bowled it!" Ed shouted defensively.

"What is going on in here!" shouted Mrs Macready from downstairs. I knew we had only a minute or so until we would have to face the wrath of the strict housekeeper.

"The Macready!" Susan hissed in a panicky voice.

"Run!"

We sprinted out of the second doorway and down the hallway away from the Macready. It was like going through a maze, twisting and turning down corridors, backing up every so often and going down another hallway. We reached a door at the end of the hall and tried to open it. It was locked firmly shut. I could hear footsteps getting louder behind us.

"Guys get a move on, someone's coming!" I panicked glancing behind me. Edmund tried another door and slammed through in to the room. Everyone piled in after him, shutting the door firmly behind us.

"Come on!" Edmund hissed at us. I turned around to see him on the other side of the room next to the old wardrobe that Lucy had found. The door was open and Edmund was indicating that we hide in the wardrobe.

"You've got to be joking." said Susan disbelievingly. The wardrobe only looked big enough to fit Edmund and Lucy not five of us. The footsteps were getting louder, so loud that it sounded like they were just in the corridor.

"Go!" Peter ushered us in to the wardrobe and pushed us all to the back and closing the door close behind us so that we were plunged in to almost darkness. All around us were huge fluffy fur coats and there were moth balls all over the floor of the wardrobe.

"Get back!" Peter hissed and pushed us back. _How big does he think this wardrobe is?_ I thought as I was jabbed in the stomach with a very bony elbow.

"OW!" I hissed in pain as I felt a sharp pain in my side as my ribs moved out of place.

"That was my foot!"

"Stop pushing!"

"Ow! Edmund get off me!"

"I'm not on you!"

"Shut up and get back!"

"There's something sharp digging in to my back!" Lucy squealed suddenly before I felt something weird. A few strands of my hair lifted up and I shivered. _Why is there a breeze in a wardrobe? _I thought when suddenly I tripped and landed face first on the floor. I shivered as I realised I wasn't lying on the wooden floor of a wardrobe but in fact, lying on a layer of thick freezing cold snow.

"What the...?" I whispered to myself as I grabbed a handful of snow and watched it melt in my hand.

"Alex, look out!" I gasped as I felt like a boulder had fallen on me, pushing me deeper in to the snow and hearing a very loud snap. I gasped as my head fell in to the snow and watched as black spots appeared all over my eyes until I couldn't see anything. I fell in to the blackness and in to the cold.


	7. Lampposts, icicles and sardines

_New and improved chapter._

_Enjoy!

* * *

_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Chapter Six**

**Lampposts, icicles and sardines.**

"Alex? Wake up...wake up!"

I groggily opened my eyes and saw a blinding whiteness causing me to groan. I was cold and quite wet and I had the most horrible pain in my side which was slowly going numb. But what really confused me was that I was surrounded by trees and the Pevensies.

"How did we get outside?" I whispered with a frown as I slowly and painfully began to sit up and long around. We were in the middle of a wood with large Oak trees (much like the one in the Professor's garden but slightly smaller) and evergreen trees that still had their leaves and spines. I shivered as I stared all around me. "And since when did England get _this_ amount of snow?"

"Alex, we're not in England. We're in Narnia!" Lucy exclaimed happily jumping and spinning around like a kid in a candy shop making her sink deep in to the snow. My jaw dropped in shock. _This _was Narnia? Narnia was _real_? Lucy really was telling the truth.

"Oh my...wow. This is incredible!" I laughed happily as I struggled to get up. Peter lifted me carefully on to my feet, being careful he didn't touch my ribs too much. "We're in a different world. How is that possible? And it's all real! That's just...bizarre!"

"Alex, take it easy. You've hurt your ribs again. Susan and Peter fell on you and nearly flattened you." Edmund said warily as he came over to help me stand up. I shook him off and held on to Peter walk, so they didn't need to worry about me.

"Oh hush up Edmund, I'm fine." I retorted in an annoyed voice. The Pevensies exchanged a glance and then stared at me warily.

"Alex, are you sure you're fine?" Peter asked anxiously. I rolled my eyes and turned to Lucy.

"What do you want to do, Lu?" I asked as sweetly as I could whilst trying to ignore them worrying about me. I'm perfectly fine.

"I want you all to meet Mister Tumnus!" she exclaimed happily. Peter sighed and then plastered a great big grin on his face to appease his little sister.

"Well then, to Mister Tumnus' it is!" he declared before walking in to the bushes.

"But we can't go hiking in the snow dressed like this! We'll freeze in no time." Susan said just as Peter re-emerged from the bushes with a massive pile of fur.

"Well, I'm sure the Professor won't mind us wearing these coats then." He replied as he started handing them out to each of us. "And anyway, if you think about it _logically_, we're not even taking them out of the wardrobe." Susan shot him a look before grudgingly putting the fur coat on. Peter handed me mine and I slipped it on, starting to feel warm already.

"But that's a girl's coat!" Edmund whined as Peter gave a coat to him. Peter narrowed his eyes and a small smirk appeared on his face.

"I know." I stifled a giggle as Peter shoved the coat in to Edmund's arms, before walking over to Lucy. Edmund glared at me and then reluctantly put the coat on. I walked past him with a small smile on my face.

"It looks good on you." I commented as I passed him to follow Peter and Lucy who had started to walk away. Suddenly I felt something cold hit me in the back of the head. I shrieked as it started to melt and drip down the back of my neck, sending shivers up and down my spine. Peter, Susan and Lucy turned around and stared at me in surprise before bursting out laughing. I spun around to face Ed, seeing his face going red as he gasped through laughing so hard. I swooped down and scooped up a handful of snow, squashing it all in to a sizeable snowball before lobbing it straight at Edmund's face.

He coughed and spluttered as some of the snow went in to his mouth as well as covering his hair and eyebrows. I sniggered before laughing uncontrollably at his shocked face. He reminded me of Santa Claus, you know; white hair, white eyebrows and rosy cheeks. The other Pevensies were roaring with laughter as I staggered forward to Ed.

"Sorry, but you should see yourself at the moment. If only we had a mirror." I sighed as I calmed down. I dusted off some of the snow in his hair and he shivered slightly. "Come on."

With that we joined the other Pevensies and we all began to follow Lucy who had started babbling excitedly about visiting her friend. "Oh, his house is so lovely and warm and there were books and photographs of his father. You'll just love it, because I know I loved it and I know you're not me, but I just know you'll like it!"

I sort of just switched off then (I'm sure the other Pevensies did too) and I stared at everything around me. It was beautiful and still so strange at the same time. _How could a world fit inside a wardrobe that couldn't even fit five children?_ We walked in to a small clearing and Lucy ran forward excitedly.

"And we met here! This spot, right next to the lamppost! Look, you can still see my fingerprints!" That caught my attention. I looked up as we reached the middle of the clearing and indeed saw a tall, iron lamppost with flickering flames burning inside the glass. I frowned. It must've have been minus forty degrees and yet the flames were still burning brightly. _Never mind that Alexandra, what is a lamppost doing in the middle of a wood, in a world that shouldn't exist? _The small voice of my grandma spoke sceptically in my head. I froze and gulped back a few sobs. I had totally forgotten that this morning my grandma had...never mind._ Don't remember it now, you'll only start crying._ I told myself as I blinked back a few tears. Edmund caught me blinking and frowned.

"Are you alright?" he whispered next to me. I hastily rubbed my eyes, turning away from him.

"Something in my eye..." I mumbled before looking determinedly at the lamppost. _Why do I always cry over such silly things?_ If I wanted to make the Pevensies think I was alright, then I have got to stop crying. "Let's keep moving. I can't feel my toes." We trudged on through the snow passing cliffs, frozen streams and even a glacier. It was incredible standing underneath the glacier and just staring up through the frozen water at the sky. We soon began to climb a slope up in to the woods. I stared in awe at all of the trees that seemed to go on forever in to the sky.

_CREEAAAK! I snapped my head up at the noise to see a branch above me point straight down._

Suddenly I swayed slightly, feeling a little dizzy with vertigo. I screwed my eyes shut and opened them, staring at the tree again.

_The guard dragged me back by my ankle as I screamed and clawed at the snow all around me._ I pressed my hand to my head feeling a headache coming along. My head snapped to the base of the tree. There was a large lump underneath the snow.

_"You know what to do." An ice-cold voice sneered. I saw a flash of silver rip across my throat, feeling a warm liquid slip down my neck and down my throat. I tried to scream but it only came out as a gurgle as the hot, burgundy liquid slipped down my throat as if it were honey. The last image I saw was the cold, pitiless black eyes of her as she touched the tip of my nose with her wand, laughing as she did. The pain was unbearable as I felt every cell in my body writhe as if in agony before freezing._

I gasped and stepped toward the lump of snow on the ground. It felt like I was dreaming that nightmare again, like I had been here before. But how could I have been? I knelt down in the cold snow and gingerly dug, wincing slightly with the cold. I could feel bile fight its way up my throat as I had a sneaking feeling that I already knew what was buried in the snow. I continued to dig deeper in to the snow only barely aware that the Pevensies had walked on ahead. I was a few inches deep when my numb hands brushed against something rough. I stopped and stared at the object underneath my hands, before widening the hole so that I could see what it was.

"Alex? What are you doing?" A voice asked not that far behind me. I jumped and shrieked in surprise, almost falling in to the hole I had dug. I looked over my shoulder and then glared.

"Edmund, don't scare me like that!" I hissed scrambling to get up. Edmund looked at me suspiciously.

"Why are you digging a hole in the snow?" I froze. What would he think if I had told him I was digging because I thought my body was underneath the snow? Would he think I was crazy? Would he tell the others? Would he start to worry about me? I didn't want them to start worrying about me, I was perfectly fine.

"I...uh I..." I stuttered. To be honest, I had no idea what I was doing at all. Edmund frowned at me and then a look of concern and worry appeared across his face. _Oh no, not you too. _I thought inside my head. The other Pevensies I could count on to worry about me, because they were kind like that but I could always rely on Edmund to not care at all, but now...

"Are you sure you're alright? Shall I look at your ribs so that they haven't broken again?" he said worriedly as he reached toward me. I slapped his hands away in disgust. How dare him, he's a boy! He can't just do that, it's improper. _Why would you care? You and Edmund have grown up together. It's not like anything's different, is it?_ That annoying little voice that sounded like my grandmother spoke inside my head.

"I am fine!" I protested angrily stepping back from him. "Stop worrying about me, I keep telling you that I am perfectly fine!" Edmund was taken aback, that much I could tell from the expression on his face. His expression suddenly changed to anger as he stepped toward me menacingly with a fierce glare.

"Well, obviously you're not because digging holes in the bloody snow! I am only trying to help you." He shouted at me, scaring me slightly with the ferocity of it and making me wince in fear. I glared back at him and stepped forward so that I was in his face. Every frustrating or annoying thing appeared in my mind and started waving flags causing my temper to fire up. All of the frustrating secrecy that the Pevensie's were keeping from me, all of the whispering behind my back and even Edmund's damn mood swings annoyed me. I hated that my Grandmother had died. I hated that my Dad was stuck fighting in the war against the Germans. I hated that I had broken ribs and I couldn't do anything to fix them. I hated everything.

"I don't need your help, you or your siblings! If you wanted to help me then maybe you should stop worrying about me!" I hissed at him before shoving him in the chest. He stumbled back and tripped, falling backwards in to the snow with his jaw open in shock. He closed it and then stood up, grumbling as he did and turned his back on me, walking away.

"Fine, be that way! You just run off with the others!" I screamed after him as he turned a corner and marched over the top of the hill, leaving footsteps in the snow. I collapsed to the snow feeling hot tears fall down my cheeks. I lay on my side and tucked my knees close, shivering slightly despite the thick fur coat I had on.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry." I choked out through my tears in to the emptiness around me. What was wrong with me? Why was I like this? I didn't really mean to shout at Edmund. I don't know what came over me, and all for what? A hole in the snow that I had dug...? _You're going crazy, Alexandra, _the voice in my head whispered gravely. I shook my head in protest and wiped my tears before shakily standing up and wrapped my coat more tightly around me. I glanced at the hole in the snow before me and kicked a small mound of snow in to the hole. I turned and trudged through the snow, following the trail of footsteps that Edmund had left behind him. I needed to apologise to him. It wasn't his fault that I had all of this misfortune. I had no right to shout at him.

But I was so confused. What was Edmund thinking when he found me digging in the snow? Why was he being so nice to me when I had been so horrid to him? I didn't deserve any of his kindness. I was just a crazy fool.

"Alex!" I looked up and saw Susan running up to me in the snow followed by Peter and Lucy. "We've been so worried about you. Ed said you hurt your ribs and you started digging a hole in the snow!"

"I didn't hurt my ribs, I'm fine." I replied with a sigh. Edmund appeared behind Peter and he crossed his arms in front of his chest, his face void of any emotion.

"But why were you so far behind?" Peter asked with a curious frown.

"I...I dropped something and it fell in the snow." I quickly lied, covering up my hesitance. Edmund scoffed and shook his head turning his back on me in disgust. "Did I miss anything?"

"Not much, Mr Tumnus' house is just around the corner!" Lucy smiled excitedly and proceeded to lead us onwards towards the side of a cliff face that had icicles hanging from underneath the rock that overshadowed us all. We trudged after Lucy, subconsciously tightening our coats tighter to keep us all warm. We must've been in this strange world for at least a few hours and Susan, Lucy and I were all in blouses and skirts. We were shivering like leaves blowing in the wind. It seemed as though the cold didn't quite affect her as much as it did Susan and I, because she was chattering away again like there was no tomorrow.

"Oh, and just to think, there will be a warm fire, comfy chairs, books and music! Oh, you have to hear a Narnian lullaby; it was simply delightful to listen to...even though you do feel sleepy afterwards..." Lucy trailed off and froze to a stop. We slowed to a stop behind her looking warily at the little girl.

"Lucy..?" Peter asked slowly before Lucy suddenly darted off towards a cliff. My eyes followed after her and I gasped, clapping my hand over my mouth in shock. There was a broken door hanging off its hinges that seemed to have been set in the side of a cliff. "Lucy!"

The older Pevensies and I chased after Lucy through the snow, leaving Edmund to run behind us. A minute later we were all piling in after Lucy in to the small cave house. Whatever happened here, someone must've gotten hurt. There was glass all over the floor, furniture tipped on its side, torn pages out of books, dusty ash-covered logs and even a dented can of sardines next to a picture that looked like it had flown out of the fireplace.

"Who could have done this to Mr Tumnus?" Lucy whispered, tears welling up in her wide blue eyes. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a small squeeze.

"Don't worry, Lu. We'll find out who did this to your friend." I reassured her as Peter walked slowly over to a piece of paper that was nailed to a wooden beam in the middle of the room. He ripped it off and then started to read it out loud.

"The faun Tumnus is hereby charged with treason against her imperial majesty Jadis, Queen of Narnia, for comforting her enemies and fraternising with humans. Signed Maugrim, Captain of the Secret Police. Long live the queen..." Peter looked up from the piece of paper in his hand, a look of worry on his face. Lucy gasped and began tearing up.

"We have to help him! Come on, we have to find him!" Lucy said desperately, heading towards the door of Mr Tumnus' home in a hurry. Peter quickly grabbed his little sister around the waist making her stop suddenly.

"Hold up Lu, we don't even know where Mr Tumnus' is." Peter spoke rationally.

"This is really dangerous Peter, we should be getting back." Susan said worriedly.

"And get in trouble from the Macready for smashing that window? Fat chance." I replied with a roll of my eyes. Susan huffed and crossed her arms in front of her.

"We've got to do something! He's my friend!" Lucy cried at her family. I couldn't help but feel sorry for her, there wasn't really much we could do to be honest.

"Why?" Everyone turned around to face Edmund who was stood by the door with a frown. I had totally forgotten he was with us. He was so quiet all the time, like a mouse. But when I think back to when we were playing cricket, an hour or so ago, and the very determined look on his face, I can't help but compare him to a predator. Silent and waiting to catch its prey, whatever the prey is. I seriously hope I'm wrong. "I mean he's a criminal."

"Mr Tumnus is _not _a criminal. He's the nicest faun I've ever met!" Lucy shouted stubbornly at her second oldest brother.

"Alright, calm down Lucy. No one's saying he's a crimi -"

"_Psst!"_

Everyone suddenly fell silent at the strange noise. It seemed to come from outside, but there was nothing there. It was desert. There was no one there at all, so where did that noise come from?

"_Psst!"_

"Look at that bird in the tree!" Susan whispered as she pointing at a snow covered tree. Sitting on a branch was a little robin. He had the most magnificently crimson chest and his eyes look like little onyx jewels.

"_Psst!" _hissed the bird before flying off towards a small mound of snow. The little bird _Psst!_ us again and flapped around on the snow.

"I think he's trying to tell us something..." I whispered quietly as I edged towards the bird. Peter caught my wrist but I tugged away and led them out of Mr Tumnus house. The robin flew away and I sighed in disappointment. What was that bird trying to tell us?

"Well, that was pointless." Scoffed Edmund from behind the other three Pevensies who were huddled together. Suddenly there was a shuffling noise from behind the snow mound. I spun around to face the snow mound, making my black hair fly out around my head. I shook slightly in fear. What if it was something dangerous? Would it hurt us? Would it kill us and eat us? The shuffling grew louder and louder. It hurried back towards the Pevensies, definitely not wanting to be the first one to die.

"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean what I said Edmund. I am so sorry for all the bad and annoying things I have ever done to you. Please forgive me." I whispered to Edmund as I cowered beside him. He looked a little bit scared himself but I could only tell that because of his eyes, the rest of his face didn't show any fear at all. He didn't reply but he just stared at the snow mound as the scuffling sounded like it was on the other side of it. I grabbed Ed's hand and closed my eyes whilst turning away from the snow mound. Suddenly the scuffling stopped. I teased open one of my eyes and peered at the thing that was going to potentially kill us.

It was a beaver.


	8. Mr Beaver the Speaker of Prophecies

_Hello everybody, long time no update._

_I am so sorry for this update taking so long, I've been snowed under with work and problems at home but here is the chapter anyway. I will admit, I did have a little bit of trouble with writer's block when writing this but I think I've overcome it for the time being. The next update I'm afraid will take a long time because I'm still snowed under with work. :(_

_On the up side though, I have a new one shot named Sensations of Death and Hope. Please check it out, it's all about Edmund and a little bit about his family. _

_Thanks to Miniver for reinspiring me to continue with this story. You are fully awesome. _

_(And during this chapter, I'm sorry I just couldn't resist the Countdown thing. You'll see.) Please review, I really want to know what you think, and it will cheer me up so much. I've had a bit of a rubbish two weeks. _

_Enjoy!_

_

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_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Mr Beaver, the Speaker of Prophecies.**

_That was what we were scared of? _I thought incredulously as I sighed in relief.

"It's a..._beaver_?" whispered Lucy in shock. Peter slowly edged towards the beaver, his hand outstretched and open so that the fuzzy little creature wouldn't get frightened away. He stepped forward again, beckoning the beaver closer. The beaver padded forward through the snow towards Peter with his nose and whiskers twitching.

"Here beaver, beaver, beaver." Peter called to the animal, crouching low to meet him. The beaver leaned up and backed on his tail.

"Well, I ain't gonna smell it if that's what you want." Spoke the beaver with a strong cockney London accent. I froze in shock, staring at the beaver with wide eyes. _Did that beaver just speak? A beaver...talking? Speaking...English?_ Lucy was the only one smiling out of us all as Peter shuffled back with a slightly flushed face. But that could just be from the cold.

"Lucy Pevensie?" inquired the beaver, simultaneously wiping the smile of the little girl's face. _Okay, so it did talk. I am not the only one who heard it._

"Y-yes?" she hesitated raising her hand and stepping forward, but not so far that she wasn't out of reach from Peter and Susan. The beaver searched in his fur for something. _Do even beavers have pockets?_ I thought, biting on my tongue to stop laughing. Out of the corner of my eye, it looked like Edmund was struggling just as much as I was from bursting out in giggles.

"Sorry...have it here somewhere...hold up...Ah here's the little bugger!" exclaimed the beaver happily as he showed us a soggy piece of cloth. He handed it to Lucy who looked at it closely.

"Hey this is the hankie I gave to Mister –

"Tumnus, yes." The beaver finished gravely, with a solemn nod of his head.

"Is he alright?" Lucy asked anxiously. The beaver quickly shushed and then looked about himself.

"Not here. Follow me." He whispered beckoning to go with him as he padded back behind the snow mound. Lucy, Peter and Susan began to follow after the little creature.

"What are you doing?" Edmund hissed at them, making them turn around to face us. Susan glanced at me and then looked away trying her best to refrain from giggling. With a frown, I glanced down and blushed letting go of Edmund's hand. My hand started to sweat slightly so I wiped it on the side of my skirt.

"He says he knows the faun." Peter said with a shrug of his shoulders as is it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"And that makes it alright to follow him. He's a _talking beaver!_" stressed Edmund casting furtive glances at the snow mound behind Peter. "He shouldn't be saying anything!"

"I must say Peter, he does have a point." said Susan reasonably, turning to face her older brother and crossing her arms in front of her.

"But we have to help Mr Tumnus! He's my friend and it's my fault that he's been captured, so we have to help him." She said valiantly. The beaver returned from behind the snow mound.

"Everything alright 'ere?" he asked suspiciously. Peter, Lucy and Susan jumped slightly in surprise like someone had just sneaked up behind them and said _boo!_

"Yes, we were just talking." Peter answered the beaver in a calm reassuring voice. The beaver glanced around himself before beckoning us after him again.

"Not here...hurry..." he whispered before disappearing behind the snow mound yet again.

Lucy stared at the trees all around us warily. "He means the trees..."

She then began to follow the beaver tugging on Peter's and Susan's hands as she went. Edmund scowled and followed them with his hands in his pockets. I remained where I stood, staring after Lucy in astonishment. I shook my head vigorously of my thoughts before stumbling after Edmund.

"Wait! What do you mean by "_the trees_"? Do they speak too?" I called to Lucy, only to be shushed by the Pevensies and the beaver. _Oh, how charming._ I thought whilst rolling my eyes. Lucy held back and tugged my hand. I bent lower so that she could whisper in my ear.

"_The trees are spies for her..."_ I gasped and stared at the trees all around us that seemed to pierce the sky. I kept my mouth shut as we walked on. As I thought about it, it seemed to fit with the fantasy of another world in the back of a wardrobe that has talking beavers and lampposts in the middle of a wood. Why not have spying trees as well? It started to get dark as we continued to walk through the snow. I shivered with cold as I pulled my fur coat tighter around my body.

Despite being freezing cold and in desperate need for some dry socks, I couldn't help but smile and look at every little thing in excitement. What are the chances of something like this happening to me? It just sounded so much like a fantasy book, or in fact one of the stories in my Greek Myths book...

I patted my pockets and looked inside my coat searching for my book. It was no where to be seen. "Oh no..." I groaned, looking up just as the others turned back to me. "My book is missing. I must've dropped it when we arrived here."

"Well we can't go back and get it, it's too dangerous." The beaver spoke up from the front as he led us through the snow. I stared back at him in alarm.

"Dangerous? Why would it be dangerous for us? Surely there are humans here, right?" I asked shakily. What if we were the only ones in this world? Would we be all alone? The beaver shushed me to be quiet and shuffled further on through the snow.

"I'll tell you once we get somewhere safe but for now stay shushed!" The beaver hissed at me as we began to ascend a steep snowy hill. "Ah! Looks like the missus' got the kettle on. Nice cup o' Rosy Lee."

We paused at the top of the hill and stared at the bottom. There was a large wooden dome made of logs, sticks, twigs and dry leaves. It looked fairly big, but I assume it would be bigger because we were so far away from it at the moment. There was a little stream of smoke floating up from a little chimney in the middle of the dam. I smiled at the sight. It looked really homey.

"It's lovely." Lucy grinned as the beaver descended down the hill. Peter and Susan followed after Lucy with a smile on their faces. Probably because there were flickering orange lights on in the dam as if there was a small fireplace inside the dome. _Wouldn't it all go up? It is made of wood after all._ I thought with a small grin.

I spotted Edmund walking slowly down the hill, being careful that he placed his feet in the footprints previously made by his siblings. I hurried after him, slipping and sliding as I went. "Ed! Wait up, Ed. Edmund!" We reached the bottom of the hill and Edmund headed off without even waiting for me. I slipped after him trying to catch up to him.

"Ed? Wait up a minute, will you?" I caught up to him and grabbed his shoulder to slow him down a bit but he shrugged my hand off. I frowned. He was ignoring me. Was it because of what I said before, when I pushed him? "Ed? What's wrong? Are you still angry with me? I did say sorry."

"_I did say sorry." _He sneered in a mocking tone. He threw a glare over his shoulder at me. "Sound familiar to you or is it just me?"

"What are you talking about?" I exclaimed throwing my hands in the air. He turned to face and glared viciously at me.

"You are such a hypocrite! Just don't talk to me." Ed demanded before stalking off, leaving me behind in the snow all alone. I called after him but he just ignored me. Was I really a hypocrite? I didn't think I was a hypocrite...I mean sure, I'll admit that I was a bit of an idiot shouting at Edmund. It wasn't his fault at all. But does that really make me a hypocrite? I trudged sadly after the others feeling the snow melt in to my shoes and soak my socks. I soon caught up with the others just as they were a few feet away from the dam.

"Darling, look what I've found!" the Beaver (or Mr Beaver as I'll call him from now on) called in to the dam through the front door. There was some bustling sounds from inside of the dam and also what sounded like chairs scraping on the floor.

"Beaver...is that you? I've been worried sick! If you've been with Badger again then you are sleeping outside the..." shouted a voice from inside of the dam before another beaver appeared in the doorway. I stared at her in surprise as her little beaver mouth dropped in to an "O" shape. "Oh my..."

"Hello..." I said hesitantly with a little wave, wondering in my head whether beavers could faint. She gasped and then turned to her husband, giving him a small slap on the arm.

"Look at my fur! You couldn't have given me five minutes warning?" she exclaimed as she tried to smooth down her coat. Lucy giggled quietly in to her hand and I smiled slightly as well. _Well, at least we know who wears the trousers in this relationship. Wait, do beavers even wear trousers?_

"I'd have given you a week if I thought it would help." Mr Beaver grinned mischievously. Mrs Beaver huffed and turned towards us.

"Oh Beaver, they look frozen! Shame on you Beaver. Let's get you inside...with some _civilised _company." She said beckoning us in after her. Mr Beaver snickered and shook his head as we all bustled in to the warm dam. "Oh, so sorry for the mess, _Beaver _was supposed to clean up this mess before he went out." It wasn't really that messy at all. There were only a few dirty plates on the table and a few leaves on the floor.

"It's alright Mrs Beaver, it doesn't bother us, does it guys?" I said politely turning to the Pevensies as they shook their heads in agreement. Mrs Beaver smiled at me and patted my knee with a clawed hand.

"You're too sweet." She replied bashfully. She turned to the others just as Edmund and Mr Beaver entered the dam. "Take a seat everyone, Countdown's nearly on!"

"Countdown?" asked Lucy with a curious look on her face. Mrs Beaver shuffled over to the kitchen area of the dam and pulled a small wooden crate filled with bark to reveal a hole in the ice underneath. I became curious and stood up, stooping slightly as I almost hit my head on the low ceiling. Mrs Beaver knelt by the hole and peered in to the hole, searching for something.

"Yes dear. Countdown, the countdown of how many fish have swam away. Look Beaver look!" she called her husband over to the hole excitedly. Mr Beaver hurriedly ambled over to her and peered in to the hole too. "Five fish! The little one swam away! Isn't that wonderful? The ice is melting!"

"Yes indeed dear." He said happily as he nuzzled his nose against hers like an affectionate kiss. I smiled to myself as they came back and sat at the table with the Pevensies. I remained standing because, even though the dam looked big on the outside there was clearly not enough room for five humans and two beavers to sit comfortably. Peter, Susan and Lucy were crowded around the table, either sitting on the floor or finding spare chairs to sit on. Edmund took off his fur coat and sat down by the door of the dam, quite far away from the rest of us.

"Is there anyway to help Mr Tumnus?" Lucy asked in a small voice.

"I'm sure there is, Lucy. Don't lose hope." I said optimistically, trying to cheer her up. She was really sad when we were at Mr Tumnus' house.

"No, definitely do not lose hope. _Aslan_ is on the move." replied Mr Beaver in a hushed voice. As soon as he said the name Aslan I looked over at the Pevensies. They looked hopeful somehow, like they were feeling something good inside them. I didn't feel anything when he said the name.

"Who's Aslan?" Edmund spoke up from the corner. I nodded in agreement. Who was Aslan? I've never heard of him. Mr Beaver burst in to a fit of laughter slamming his paw on the table in front of him.

"Who's Aslan? Oh you cheeky little blighter!" he gasped through his giggles. Mrs Beaver stared at me and Edmund in turn before elbowing her husband in the side. He stopped laughing and yelped in pain as Mrs Beaver nodded towards us as well as the rest of the Pevensies. He frowned at us. "You don't know, do you?"

"Well, we haven't exactly been here very long." Susan said reasonably.

"Well, he's not only the king of the whole _wood_. The top geezer, the _real_ King of Narnia!" Mr Beaver exclaimed, staring at out blank faces. "Oh Mother of -"

"Beaver!" his wife scolded him with a small slap on his arm. He turned to his wife with an exasperated look etched on his furry face.

"They don't even know about the prophecy!" That sparked my interest. I stared curiously at them.

"What prophecy?" I asked as I crossed my arms in front of me. I suddenly felt an icy wind blow past me, sending shivers up my spine. _This dam is seriously cold._ I thought as I pulled my coat closer around me.

"There's a prophecy..._When Adam's flesh and Adam's bone, sits on Cair Paravel in throne, the evil time shall be over and done."_

"You know, that doesn't really rhyme." Susan said in her know-it-all voice. I rolled my eyes as a smirk grew on my face. _Trust Susan to have to analyse every sentence we say._ I thought with a shake of my head.

"You're kinda missing the point." retorted Mr Beaver with a sigh. Mrs Beaver rubbed her husband's shoulders and spoke up.

"It has been long since foretold that two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve will defeat the White Witch and restore peace to Narnia." She smiled happily, staring at the Pevensies with a hopeful look. Susan's mouth was open in shock whilst Peter and Lucy stared back at the beaver couple wide eyed.

"And you think we're the ones?" Susan exclaimed suddenly causing me to jump slightly.

"Well you'd better be! Aslan's already fitting out your army!" Mr Beaver standing up over the table.

"So, you mean...we're supposed to be here? You've been expecting us." I questioned, feeling a tiny bubble of hope inside of me. _This is brilliant! This place is so beautiful._ I thought.

"Why of course dear. How else would you have gotten here?" Mrs Beaver smiled.

"Are you expecting us to fight against a Witch? We can't fight in a war!" Peter exclaimed in a panicky voice.

"But we need you. Narnia needs you, your Majesty." I blinked and stared at Mr Beaver. Did he just call Peter _your Majesty_?

"Hold up." Lucy spoke up suddenly and I looked over at her, waiting for her to talk. I almost forgot she was there. "If you said _two_ Sons of Adam and _two_ Daughters of Eve, what about Alex?"

They all turned and stared at me, making me feel a tad uncomfortable under their gaze. Lucy did have a fair point. What was I doing here if the prophecy was only talking about the Pevensies? What was my role in all of this?

Mr Beaver looked at me with a frown like he was studying me. "I don't know. There was no mention of a third Daughter of Eve." The little bubble of hope burst and there was a prick at the back of my eyes. I wasn't supposed to be here. I wasn't wanted. They just wanted my friends.

"I don't belong here do I?" I asked in a timid voice, feeling tears start to form at the back of my eyes, ready to overflow. "S-should I go h-home?"

"No! Of course you belong here Alex! Don't say things like that." Peter said sternly as he stood up abruptly, hitting his head on the ceiling with a _thump!_ I winced in pain for him as her stooped and rubbed the back of his head, heading towards me before giving me a comforting hug. I hugged him back as I forced the tears back. I felt another shiver up my spine as I pulled away from Peter's hug. I turned to the door and gasped. Edmund was gone.

"So are we going to help Mr Tumnus or not?" Lucy spoke in a voice of authority. I panicked as I searched all around the dam, hoping Ed was just sat somewhere else. I barely even listened to the others talk as I continued to panic. _Where are you Ed?_

"Er guys..?" I said in a shaky voice. They ignored me and continued talking. I tiptoed to the door to find it half open with a gusty wind whistling it's way in to the dam. _So that's why it was so cold. _

"We have to help Mr Tumnus Susan! It's my fault that he was arrested." Lucy protested to her sister after Susan had said that they should all go home.

"Guys..?" I said in a louder voice. They still didn't hear me.

"It's too dangerous Lu! Mum sent us away so we wouldn't get caught up in a war. This directly contradicts what mother sent us away for!" Susan cried out loud.

I let out an annoyed sigh. "Guys!"

"What Alex?" Susan retorted with a glare at me.

"Where the heck is Edmund?"

The Pevensies paled as they looked around the dam for their missing wayward brother. Peter clenched his jaw and glared at the door. "I'm going to kill him."

"You may not have to. Has Edmund ever been to Narnia before?" Mr Beaver asked gravely.

Suddenly, our situation just got a whole lot more dangerous. And it was my entire fault.


	9. Chasing after Ed in the snow

_Hello, I've got another update for you. Yay!_

_I don't think I will be able to update soon because we're going to be going in to exams as soon as we go back to school which really sucks. I have a new one shot about Eustace and Jill called Breathe. Please check it out. _

_Thanks go to a number of people who have reviewed. Names include: **dramaticalmama, Sonny 13, Noel Ardnek, FelipeMarcusThomas, Oxo-Cube-23, Anonymous and Sally Moore.**_

_Thank you to all those who have reviewed, you are awesome. _

_I hope you all enjoy this chapter, it took me ages to write. Enjoy!_

_

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_**The Affairs of the Heart.**

**Chasing after Ed in the snow**

I didn't know how we had gotten here but the only thought inside my head was to run. It seemed so much like my dream but this time it was _so_ different. For one thing, I wasn't being chased by an evil woman out for my blood instead I was the one doing the chasing. After the Pevensies that is.

Back at the dam, Mr Beaver had told us everything about the White Witch. He told us about the death of Queen Swanwhite (who was the last royal on the throne at Cair Paravel before she was murdered), the hundred years of winter that she had caused because of a spell she had cast and he also told us about her magic wand that could turn Narnians to stone. If Edmund had entered her palace on his own he was going to be turned in to a statue for sure.

"Hurry up Alex!" Peter shouted over his shoulder as he sped off up the snowy hill with Lucy, Susan and Mr Beaver staggering after him. My chest was starting to tighten as I stumbled after the others, gasping for air as I went. How can I keep up with Peter when I have broken ribs? I had to keep running though. We had to rescue Edmund from the White Witch.

As I ran, the most horrible thoughts flew through my mind. What if we were too late? What if Edmund had already been turned to stone? What if, when we get to the White Witch's palace, we found Ed's horrified body frozen in solid granite? _Stop thinking that Alexandra! You will rescue Edmund and he will not be turned to stone! _My grandmother's voice said sternly to me inside my head. I pushed myself onwards, forcing myself to run no matter how much I hurt. This whole situation was my fault. If I hadn't been such an ass towards Ed then maybe he wouldn't have run away. He'd still be with us, safe and sound. But no, I just _had _to argue with him. I just _had _to shout at him and push him in the snow.

"Alex, come on!" Lucy called as she paused for a moment at the top of the hill. I hurried as fast as I could up the steep snowy hill until I reached the others at the top. In the valley below us, there was a vast palace and courtyard made entirely of ice. Even though I wanted to, I just couldn't take my eyes off of the Witch's domain. This must've been the White Witch's castle. There were two grand doors at the entrance of the palace courtyard and if I squinted really hard at the base of the doors, I could just make out a dark silhouette of a person through the entrance.

"EDMUND!" Lucy screamed just before Mr Beaver hastily covered her mouth with both of his paws. Peter and I began to run down the hill as quick as we could go without falling over. I was just about halfway down the hill when suddenly something snagged on my coat, sending me flying forward on to my front and rolling down the last half of the hill. I coughed and gasped for air as I went, feeling my ribs move inside me. I landed at the bottom of the hill with a loud and painful _SLUMPF!_

With a groan I rolled on to my back feeling my blood rush to my head. Peter was lying across my legs, face down in the snow as if he'd just tripped up himself. He groaned and rose up on to his knees before he began tugging his coat off of something.

"Let go of me!" he hissed when suddenly Mr Beaver was thrown in to my view.

"You're playing into her hands!" he shouted as Peter tugged his coat out of the creature's paws, knocking him backwards slightly.

"But we can't just let him go!" Susan cried. Lucy and Peter shook their head in agreement.

"He's our brother!" added Lucy as I tried to stand up without hurting my sides even more. I was definitely going to hurt in the morning. That is, if we live until the morning.

"He's the bait!" said Mr Beaver, his whiskers twitching anxiously. "The witch wants all four of ya!"

"Why?" I croaked as I shakily rose to my feet. Peter hurriedly worriedly over to me but I shook him off. I could stand by myself perfectly.

"She wants to stop the prophecy from coming true." He said in a hushed voice. "To kill ya!"

It felt as if the world had decided to dump a sky-full of dread on top of our shoulders to carry. I felt like Atlas, I honestly did. If we entered that palace after Ed, we'd be killed. Well, the Pevensies will be seeing as they are supposed to be kings and queens of this place. I didn't know what would happen to me. Most likely I'd be killed along with them.

"This is all your fault!" Susan accused as she glared at Peter. Her older brother stared at her with wide astonished eyes.

"My fault..?" Susan rolled her eyes and stepped forward him.

"None of this would've happened if you'd listened to me in the first place!" she shouted loudly as Lucy and I stared on in surprise. The last time I had ever seen Susan shout was when we were back in Finchley and her favourite teddy bear was thrown out of the top window in their house on to the roof where no one could reach it. And to make it worse, it was raining. I think Bubbles is still there actually. I won't mention who threw the beloved bear out the window because at the moment we have more pressing matters but let's just say, between you and I, it wasn't who they say it was.

"Oh so you knew this would happen?" Peter snapped irritably back at his sister. Susan stepped back slightly looking slightly tearful.

"I didn't know what would happen..." she said in a quiet voice like she was trying to hide the hurt in her voice but failing miserably. "...this is why we should have left when we still could!"

"Stop it!" I jumped in surprise and my attention rounded on Lucy. Susan and Peter both fell silent at Lucy's outburst. "This isn't going to help Edmund!"

"Lucy's right." Mr Beaver sighed in relief. "Only Aslan can save your brother now."

How was that going to help Edmund if he's probably already dead? I closed my eyes just as I felt a few tears trying to push their way out of my tear ducts. _Stop thinking that! You don't know whether he's dead or not._ My grandmother voice told me sternly.

"How can you be so sure that this Aslan bloke can help Ed? What can he do?" I exclaimed suddenly feeling my anger start to simmer. "How can he help Ed if he's already dead?"

"Alex!" Susan gasped casting a wary glance at Lucy, wondering whether she was going to start crying or not.

"Come on Sue! You know there's logic here. The longer we stay here doing nothing, the more likely that Ed's going to be dead!" My voice sounded quite shaky and I felt those pesky tears push themselves harder out of my eyes.

"Don't say things like that Alex! Ed is alive and we are going to save him." Peter snapped. I stared back at him.

"I thought you hated him! You say so many times that you'd like to kill him but now you're -"

"Just shut up Alex! Shut up!" He shouted angrily at me. I suddenly felt like a bull seeing red.

"Don't you dare tell me to shut up, Peter! You aren't my father!" I shouted as tears began to fall down my cheeks. "I don't care what you all do but I am going in to that palace and I am going to rescue Ed before he really is dead!" I turned on my toes and angrily began to stomp towards the Witch's ice castle.

"Oh no, you're not." Peter growled as he suddenly grabbed my arm and yanked me back. I rounded my glare at him and pulled my arm.

"Let go of me Pete or I swear you will regret it! What are you doing?" I yelped as suddenly I was thrown in the air and over Peter's shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Put me down now Pete!"

"You are _not _going in to that castle, risking your life to save Edmund." he said in a dark voice. "We are not losing you as well as Edmund, so you're coming with us."

I scoffed and slapped him on his back, making him wince in pain. "Oh? You and who's army, Peter?"

"Do you want me to knock her out your majesty?" Mr Beaver asked tiredly with a paw to his forehead, causing me to stare wide eyed at Mr Beaver in shock. "She'd be more cooperative that way."

"We are not knocking her out!" Susan said firmly stepping forward in front of Peter. I couldn't see her from my position but I knew she would have a look on her face that would remind me of Mrs Pevensie's "_go-to-your-room!"_ look. "But you are still coming with us Alex, whether you want to or not."

"But what about Ed!" I protested as Peter began to carry me behind the others. There was no way that Pete was going to let me down now. He'd probably just think that I'd run off again. Well, truth be told, I probably would run off after Ed anyway.

"We'll go to Aslan and we'll ask for his help. It's the only thing we can do at the moment." Susan sighed as she gently pulled Lucy along with her. I sighed. Even though I didn't like the idea of going to this person for help when I could perfectly go in and get him myself, but there was no use arguing any more about this.

"Come on we'll just head back to the Dam and then we'll rest for the -"

A howl echoed through the air which was followed by two or three more howls. Mr Beaver's jaw dropped in fear and began to quiver.

"What was that?" I questioned, starting to feel quite scared.

"It's the Secret Police. That brother of yours has just given you away! They're after us. Run!" Mr Beaver exclaimed as he nudged Lucy and Susan forward. "Run! Get back to the Dam and don't stop!"

Peter put me down on my feet and grabbed my hand before proceeding to drag me along behind him as we ran down the hill. My ribs were jostling inside of my chest and I gasped for air, begging for it to dull the pain for a little longer. I was definitely going to hurt in the morning.

"Come on!" Mr Beaver urged us on as he ambled through the snow on all fours. The howls of the wolves were getting louder as we ran on. I began to really get scared. I wasn't originally a big fan of wolves in the first place. It was just the way they'd snarl at you and the way they always seemed to be looking at you like you was a piece of meat. Another piercing howl echoed through the air and I was reminded of those air raid sirens back in England. I was absolutely terrified then and, if I'm honest, I am completely petrified now.

The Dam appeared as we turned a corner and soon we were all bundling in to the wooden hut all at once. As soon as we were inside, Mr Beaver shouted "Hurry mother, they're after us!"

"Oh well, we'll have to get some food packed then! It's going to be a long journey and Beaver can get pretty cranky on an empty stomach." Mrs Beaver said as she soon began bustling hurriedly around the kitchen collecting food and giving them to Susan to pack in a little white cotton bag.

"I'm cranky now!" he retorted as he dragged his armchair across the floor. I ran over to him and helped him. _Why the heck are we moving a chair anyway? _I thought. Mr Beaver hurried behind the chair and began to rip up the rug underneath the chair as I stared on in confusion. _What the heck is he doing? _

"Do you think we need jam?" Susan asked as she shoved more food in the little bag in front of her.

Peter scoffed and stared at her incredulously. "Only if the witch serves toast!"

I shook my head in despair when suddenly the room around me swayed like I was on the deck of a ship. A nauseous feeling was creeping up in to my throat. I was going to be sick, I was sure of it. My legs wobbled and collapsed underneath me, sending me crashing in to the table and on to the floor.

"Alex!" Lucy exclaimed as she and the others hurried over to see if I was alright. The room was still spinning around me and my eyes couldn't focus on one thing.

"Not again..." I groaned as I tried to sit up. Peter held me up as Mrs Beaver ambled over to me.

"Are you alright dear? Are you sick?" she asked worriedly. I shook my head gently trying to keep the sick that were crawling up my throat down. It wouldn't exactly be polite to just vomit all of Mrs Beaver's home after she had taken us in.

A wolf howled in the distance. Susan and Peter paled before Peter shifted to pick me up. "We have to get out of here now!"

"This way!" Mr Beaver called as he pulled up a trapdoor. _So that's why we were moving the chair!_ I thought as Peter nudged his sisters towards the trapdoor. Mr Beaver jumped in to the hole, quickly followed by Mrs Beaver. Lucy was sent in next and then finally Peter and I jumped in. We seemed to have jumped in to darkness before Susan jumped in behind us with a torch. The torch lit up the darkness to reveal a long underground tunnel, only big enough for Pete to have to stoop over to be able to fit.

"Come on!" Mr Beaver urged as he began to run down the tunnel in front of us.

"Pete put me down." I said as I tried to wriggle out of Pete's tight grip.

"No Alex -"

"Pete, I'll manage. You're the fastest out of us all, you'll be able to catch up. Just go, we'll be right behind you." I said as I finally wriggled free and landed on the floor. Reluctantly, Peter did as he was told and took the torch from Susan as well as the food sack before heading off in front. Susan helped me up and nudged Lucy in front.

"Come on Alex." she said as we began to hurriedly shuffle through the tunnel. I was still feeling dizzy, but I had to keep moving or else the wolves would get us. As we hurried, my thoughts went to Edmund. What was happening to him now? Was he alright? Was he dead? So many questions were going through my head that my eyes were beginning to well with tears again. I hated this. I just wanted to go home now not running away from killer wolves who work for a megalomaniac Witch. I wanted to see my Grandmother; I wanted to see my Dad, heck I even wanted to see Mrs Macready!

We had gotten about halfway through the tunnel, even though there was no telling how long this tunnel was, when Mr and Mrs Beaver called back that we should be safe soon.

"Me and my mate Badger dug this tunnel, comes out just near his place." Mr Beaver called over his furry shoulder.

"You told me it led to your Mum's!" Mrs Beaver claimed astonished at her husband.

"Ahh!" Lucy squeaked suddenly as she tripped up and fell to the floor. Everyone froze in silence as the sound of snuffling and barking filled the air. "They're in the tunnel..."

"Get up!" Peter urged as he pulled Lucy to her feet before dragging her along through the tunnel. Susan and I shuffled as fast as we could down the tunnel after the others. When Susan and I finally reached the others, we were at a dead end. Literally.

"You should've brought a map!" Mrs Beaver hissed at her husband as we all began to panic. The wolves were surely not far behind us ready to rip us all to shreds when they got here.

"There wasn't any room next to the chair!" he retorted before he suddenly leapt on to the wall and scrambled up, leaving dirt falling in little tiny streams. With a huff, Mrs Beaver leapt up after him and escaped out of the tunnel. The wolves were getting louder as they ran through the tunnel after us.

"Come on Peter! Let's get out of here!" I stressed. Peter shook his head as if he was coming out of a trance. He turned to Lucy and lifted her up from her waist before she was pulled up and disappeared out of view. At least Lucy was safe.

Peter turned to me. "Come on, you next." Susan handed me over Peter and took the torch from her brother. As he lifted me up, I heard another snap and a shot of pain ran through my torso. I cried out in pain, but Peter pushed me onwards through the hole in the top of the tunnel. Mr and Mrs Beaver pulled me through the hole on to the snow on the ground, before leaving me alone to help Sue and Pete out of the tunnel.

I rolled on to my back as I saw the dark starry sky high above me. It had been a while since I had seen stars. It was funny really. I had only seen stars in my dreams but not in England. In England all that anyone saw was clouds, German aircraft and smoke. No stars. Not even the moon. Just darkness. The stars here were exactly like the ones I dreamt of. My Dad used to say that stars were people who had died and were now in heaven looking down on humanity and it's problems. At this moment, I couldn't help but agree.

"By the mane..." muttered Mr Beaver suddenly. I rolled my head to the side to see Mr Beaver staring at a statue of a badger frozen in fear. My eyes widened in fear as I realised who it was. The statue must have been Mr Beaver's friend. "He was my best mate."

Was this what was going to happen to Edmund? Is this what the Witch had done to so many Narnians? Apparently, that was what Mr and Mrs Beaver were known as a species. Well to be specific, anyone who lived in Narnia were called Narnians apart from the Witch. The Beavers said that the Witch was from _somewhere else _but they didn't know where from.

"What happened here?" Peter whispered, seeming to voice everyone's thoughts at once.

"This is what happens to anyone who cross the White Witch." a new voice spoke, making everyone, including me, jump in surprise. I rolled on to my front and struggled to my knees with a groan. No one came to help me up, they were just stood still shocked, well everyone except Mr Beaver who looked like he was on the warpath.

"Take one more step and I'll chew you to splinters!" he growled threateningly as Mrs Beaver tried to hold him back from attacking the new stranger. I looked up to see a large muddy-red fox standing on the roof of a little house, with a little sneaky smirk on his face.

"Relax! I'm one of the good guys." the fox replied with an easy going tone and a shrug. He hopped down from the house and landed not to far from me.

"Well you look awfully like one of the bad ones!" Mr Beaver sneered in disgust as the fox rolled his eyes.

"An unfortunate family resemblance." he replied with a slightly clipped tone. He turned his head to me and his features moved in to a frown. "Are you alright? You don't look so well."

I was just about to shake my head when a howl echoed in the area. The wolves had reached the end of the tunnel. "Never mind about me now, we've got to hide." I groaned as I staggered to my feet. Susan walked to my side and looked at me with worried eyes.

"What do we do?" Peter asked the fox. The fox smiled cunningly.

"Climb that tree up there. The Wolves can't climb trees nor do they have the brains to either so you'll be safe up there. " he said gesturing to the large oak tree next to the house behind him. He turned his gaze to me. "You'll have to hide her in one of the houses. I wouldn't risk taking her up there in case she falls."

"But what if I'm caught?" I asked as Mr and Mrs Beaver grabbed the hem of my skirt and tugged me along to the house.

"I'll try and fight them off but you'll have to make a run for it. Now hurry!" the fox replied as he immediately started to sweep up our tracks with his bushy tail. I entered a little house and walked over to a little side room before I collapsed in exhaustion on to a little nest. I was so tired. I just wanted this all to end. Just go home and sleep. Sleep and live in my dream world. Maybe Ed will get out of this alive and it will all be fine. Hopefully. My eyes started to droop as I heard noises from outside the little house, but I didn't listen. I was too tired. Before I even knew what was even happening I had fallen asleep. The nest felt quite comfortable, even if it was made out of twigs, pine-cones and generous amounts of dirt.

The door to the house smacked open and I jumped awake in fright. One of the wolves must've gotten in the house and they could smell me. I was done for. I knew I shouldn't have come in here. I was going to die. I shuffled back as quietly as I could only for the back of my head to hit a wall with a quiet _thud!_ The wolves were going to find me for sure now. I didn't want to be ripped to shreds. I could just imagine a pitch black wolf with bared teeth growling with hunger as he prowled for his next meal, which was at the moment, me. I whimpered in fear as tears welled in my eyes. A shadow appeared on the wooden floorboards in front of me and I knew I wasn't going to survive any longer. I could hear the creature's ragged breathing from here. I held my breath ad closed my eyes shut tightly, waiting for my end. There was only one thought going through my head. _I never should have thrown that bear out the window and blamed it on Ed. _This was surely my punishment for everything bad I had done. A tear fell down my cheek as I waited for the darkness to consume me.


	10. Dreaming of Edmund in a cell

_Hello again!_

_Yes, I have another update for you and I'm in a really happy mood for some reason. Maybe it was because I finish this tonight or something but I'm just in a smily mood. :):):)_

_Thank you all who reviewed, especially: **ReadingTillEternity, Wouldn't you like to know, Anonymous, Sally Moore, Noel Ardnek, Dramaticalmama **and **FelipeMarcusThomas. **You are all so awesome and thanks for sticking with the story and everything. :)_

_I really hope you review and tell me what you think._

_Enjoy!_

_

* * *

_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Dreaming of Ed in a cell**

A ragged cough filled the air and my eyes snapped open in surprise, as a gasp escaped my lips. I was suddenly met with a dark silhouette of a human. The silhouette peered around the corner and I was met with the sight of a little brown haired girl.

"Lucy!" I gasped as I scrambled forward and pulled her in to a hug, wincing in pain because of my ribs. "I thought you were one of the wolves!" I pulled back to see her little face, flushed pink because of the cold.

"Sorry Alex. I think I'm coming down with a cold." Lucy mumbled before wiping her nose on her handkerchief. I sighed as a little smile appeared on my face.

"I'm just glad you're safe. Where are the others?" I asked as I shakily got to my feet.

"Oh, they're outside with the beavers and Mr Fox." She said as she took my hand and slowly began to lead me out of the little dark house that I had been hiding in. "Are you alright?"

"I'm going to be fine." I said quickly, feeling a little bit guilty that I was fibbing to Lucy. My ribs must've been in a really bad way. Every inch of my torso was acting as if I was being pinched and prodded by a million crabs.

"That's what Mummy always said. She said that we were all going to be fine. Even Mr Portentia said that we'll be okay because we were going to win the war." Lucy said glumly. "But we've been at war for a while."

I stared at Lucy in awe as I realised just what she said. She was more than what people gave her credit for. She always noticed things that we always missed. I smiled. "Well, we are going to win the war Lu. We're British. We're too stubborn to back down."

"I hope you're right." Lucy sighed just as we exited the little house. The Beavers, Mr Fox and Susan were all sitting on logs in a circle whilst Peter was struggling to light a fire. The bright sparks from the two stones that Peter was using were giving me a headache. I began to feel nauseous again so I quickly sat down on the log next to Susan. Every time that Mr Fox shifted a paw he winced and began to whimper in pain.

"Are you alright?" I asked the poor creature lying on top of the snow. The fox looked up at me with a crooked, painful smile on his face.

"Me? Yes, I am perfectly fine. It's just a little twinge - ahh!" he yelped in pain suddenly when he shifted a little bit too much. I quickly knelt down beside him and I noticed a little muddy red patch on his side amongst his fur. It was blood.

"You don't seem alright." I said suspiciously as his head slumped tiredly in to the snow. Mrs Beaver waddled over to the both of us with a small wooden bowl filled with melted snow and a cloth.

"Don't be so silly Fox, now hold still while I try and mend that wound." She said sternly. For some odd reason, Mrs Beaver reminded me of Betty back at the Old Professor's house. I shook my head trying to shake away my thoughts. Mr Fox squirmed and yelped when Mrs Beaver dabbed his wound with the damp cloth in her paw. Apart from Mr Fox's yelping and Lucy's sniffling, there was no other noise except from the _click, click, click_ of the two stones that Peter were hitting together, trying to spark a fire.

It shouldn't have been this silent. We were in the middle of the woods for crying out loud. There should be at least sounds of woodland animals burrowing or hunting for food. There should be owls hooting and bats squeaking as they flew through the branches high in the tops of the trees. But there wasn't. There was just silence.

"We're going to go look for some more wood. We'll be back soon." Susan spoke as she and Lucy stood up. Peter looked up and told them both to stay safe before turning back to the two stones in his hands. I turned away from Mr Fox and Mrs Beaver and shuffled towards Peter nervously. He didn't look up at me but the clicking sound of the stones in his hands became louder and more frequent. I felt guilty because of the argument we had earlier. I needed to apologise to him or else I'll be losing two friends.

"I'm sorry Peter." I mumbled to him as I pick up a few small pieces of kindling and put them in to the small pile that Peter was trying to light. His hands stopped moving and the clicking noise fell silent. I hesitantly looked up to see Peter staring at me, his face void of any emotion. I took a deep breath. He must've been really angry. "I didn't really mean to say all of those things about Ed."

"Then why did you say them?" he asked stiffly. I sniffled and sat back on my feet.

"I don't know. It's my fault that Ed ran away to that witch. If I didn't argue with him then maybe he would still be here with us rather than over there dead." I felt my nose start to run so I wiped my nose on my sleeve. Peter sighed and sat back next to me.

"Alex, there's no way for sure that Edmund's dead. You've got to think positively. You have to or else you'll go mad." He said quietly, speaking more to himself than to me I think. It was true what Peter said. You've got to think positively. I thought about all of the soldiers who were sent back to England from the war, all decrepit and insane. I didn't want to end up like that, stuck in a hospital with a blue ribbon pinned to my front. I shuddered at the thought. Peter wrapped an arm around my shoulders and gave me a sideways hug. "We all miss Edmund."

"Do you really think we can lead an army?" I whispered quietly, knowing that the Beavers and Mr Fox could be listening in on our conversation. Peter sighed, un-wrapped his arms around me, picked up the stones and started to click them again. "Pete?"

"I just want Ed back." He turned to the fire and continued to spark the fire, effectively ended our conversation. Hours went by and no one spoke a word, not even Susan and Lucy when they returned from collecting wood. It suddenly felt like the train ride all over again. We were acting like strangers, not friends. Not even Mr and Mrs Beaver could think of a way to cheer us up.

It wasn't long before Peter had finally lit the fire. We all crowded around the fire, getting as much warmth to our bodies without the risk of burning ourselves. My thoughts returned to home and my father. Was he okay? How was the war going? Was he wondering how I was? But of course he'd be fighting, so he couldn't afford to think about my safety without risking his own. My hand went up and enclosed around my locket which was still firmly around my neck.

"What happened to Badger?" asked Mr Beaver in a hushed voice. I turned to Mr Beaver as he whispered to Mr Fox, who was lying on the ground. Mr Fox looked up at him with a sad look on his little furry face.

"He was helping Tumnus when the witch got here and turned everyone to stone." He yelped suddenly when Mrs Beaver continued to wipe away the dried blood in his fur. "Ow!"

"Oh stop squirming! Honestly, you're worse than Beaver on bath day!" she said exasperatedly. Mr Beaver turned to us with a shrug and a small cheeky smirk on his face.

"Worst day of the year." He shuddered, causing Lucy to giggle a little bit. I smiled slightly as well. At least Mr Beaver was trying to cheer up Lucy.

"I wish I could say their bark is worse than their bite." groaned Mr Fox in pain. He suddenly struggled to his feet. "But sadly I must leave and continue to rally up troops for his majesty."

Mr and Mrs Beaver gasped in surprise as they turned to Mr Fox with wide eyes. "You've seen Aslan?" I frowned. What was so special about this Aslan person? It sounds as if he was some kind of idol to these creatures. I glanced at the others and once again they seemed to be filled with some kind of hope. I didn't feel anything when we heard this Aslan's name.

"What's he like?" Mrs Beaver asked happily. Mr Fox smiled a sigh of contentment and looked up with his eyes full of happiness.

"Like…everything we'd ever thought of." Mr and Mrs Beaver began to gush with excitement. Mr Fox turned to Peter who was sat gloomily staring at the fire and prodding the hot orange embers with a stick. "You'll be grateful to have him fight alongside you in the war, High King Peter."

"We're not here to fight any war." Susan interrupted suddenly making me jump slightly. I had totally forgotten she was there. The furry woodland creatures gasped and their eyes went wide with horror.

"Surely, High King Peter…? The prophecy…?" Mr Fox said in a panicky voice. Peter looked up sadly into the eyes of the cunning brave Fox and sighed. I watched on sadly, feeling sorry for Peter. Imagine his situation at the moment. He was just a sixteen year old boy and all of a sudden he had just been dumped a whole load of responsibilities like looking after his younger siblings, and me for that matter, he had to be mature enough not to let the pressure get to him or else there would be no hope for us all and now he's suddenly a King of a magical country that we had found in the back of a Wardrobe in a house in the countryside, all in the matter of a few days. It must have been tough for him.

"We just want our brother back." He replied quietly, his eyes swimming with remorse and guilt. I couldn't take it anymore. Everyone was so sad. It was so strange to see everyone like this.

"I reckon everyone should get some sleep for tonight. That way we'd be wide awake for tomorrow morning." I suggested quietly as I stood up and began to clear an area for everyone to sleep near the fire. Everyone nodded and started to busy themselves for bed. As I crouched down to sweep away some sharp holly leaves that were lying on the snow, I felt a twinge of pain in my chest. I winced and gasped, suddenly feeling the air around me getting thicker and harder to breathe in. My knees buckled and I fell in to the snow. The pain was excruciating but in a slow, agonizing burn sort of way. A few tears fell from my eyes and froze halfway down my cheek.

Mrs Beaver waddled over to me to see if I was alright and gave me a sympathetic look. "Oh, you poor darling, you shouldn't push yourself too hard. Here let me have a look." She said as she gently pushed me on to my back and shuffled closer to me. I reluctantly lifted up my shirt to show her my bruises. I didn't know how bad they had gotten since I had last saw them but from the amount of pain I was feeling I felt that they were a lot darker. Mr Beaver began to tut. "You should've shown me this earlier. I would've given you a balm to help with the pain."

"I didn't want to burden you." I whispered quietly hoping that none of the Pevensies could hear me.

"Nonsense, don't be so silly. Now stay still while I go look in the knapsack and see if we packed anything that might help." She said before bustling off towards the knapsack that we had brought. I began to feel sleepy again and my eyes started to droop, unable to stay open. In what felt like no time at all, Mrs Beaver was back attending to my ribs and I had fallen in to a soothing sleep.

I dreamt that I was in a huge white castle that had rich, red tapestries and grand halls that seemed to just radiate warmth. I began to think I was in Olympus, the ancient city of the Greek Gods or in Camelot the famous city of King Arthur. The floors and the walls seemed to shine like gold throughout the castle as I walked barefoot along the corridors. I think I had arrived in a throne room, but I can't remember how I had exactly gotten there. This is what my dreams were like. They led you to the important stuff and skipped out the middle, always leaving them for you to discover the next day. Like Déjà vu. It is sometimes really frustrating but I have to just ignore it. So as I walked in to the throne room, I noticed that there was somebody standing behind the thrones staring out of the windows. I think they were female but I couldn't really tell because of the brightness of the room. They had long blonde hair that seemed to shine like the sun and they were wearing a long, light-blue dress. _Yes, definitely a female._ I thought as I walked forward silently, hoping not to startle her and make her run away. I wanted to see her face. I wanted to see if she was as beautiful like the rest of her. I wanted to see if her eyes matched her dress. I was about three feet away from her when suddenly the image began to simmer away. _No! Please just a second more, just let me see her face! _I thought desperately. Just before the image dissolved the woman turned her head slightly.

The scene changed. I was in a dark, freezing cold cell. Contrary to the castle before everything seemed to suck the warmth and the happiness out of you. Like there was no hope in the world. I began to look around the cell wondering whether I could get out of here. It was silly of me really. I was in a dream! I didn't need to find a way out. The walls seemed to be made out of something slippery. Was it glass? I stepped forward to take a closer look. There was a crunch under my feet. I glanced down at my shoes to see a light dusting of frost. The walls were made out of ice and the floor was covered in snow. It was like an igloo, apart from less welcoming and there was a door made of metal bars. No, I was definitely in a cell.

Suddenly I heard a sniffle behind me. I spun around in surprise to see someone lying on floor, shivering and sniffling. I gasped as I recognised who it was. It was Edmund. I hurried over to him and knelt down on the freezing floor by his head. I reached out to him but my hand hit something hard just merely inches away from him. I couldn't touch him; I couldn't even let him know that he'll be alright. I was only in a dream. But it was so real. It had to be real! Even I couldn't dream this up.

"Edmund, don't worry. We're going to get help and we're going to get you somewhere safe. Just don't worry!" I whispered to him, just to reassure him even though I knew there was no way he could hear me. He looked so cold. His hair and his eyebrows had a light dusting of frost on them. His cheeks were so pale that I thought he had sort of become snow himself and his lips were blue. He was shivering so much. A few tears of frustration fell from my eyes. I couldn't warm him up or anything. He could have frostbite or even hypothermia and I couldn't do anything. I felt so useless. He squeezed his eyes shut and he whimpered quietly, sniffling and rubbing his nose with his knuckles. As he opened his eyes I noticed a few tears of his own fall down his cheeks. He was crying. I had never seen him cry before. Sure, not many people had seen me cry before except the Pevensies, but Edmund? Never. I didn't really think he could cry. He let out a quiet sob that pulled at my heartstrings. I had to try and comfort him somehow. I reached out my hand to his cheek and as soon as it hit the wall, I pushed against it. My hand began to shake as I pushed against the force-field around him.

"Oh come on!" I hissed to myself. My hand remained where it was, tantalisingly close to his cheek. I sighed and gave up. Instead, I lay down as close as I could to him wishing in some vain hope that my body heat would warm him up and stop him crying. Seeing him cry was just wrong. Just so, so wrong. I stared sadly at him as he continued to shiver, feeling more tears slide down my cheeks. His eyes closed again and he wiped his nose. _He should have a hankie. _My grandmother's voice mumbled to me in the back of my mind. I rolled my eyes as I watched him, feeling my mouth twitch slightly. I wanted to wipe away his tears. I wanted to give him a hug. I wanted to…No, he's just a friend.

I leaned as close as I could to him and I whispered to him. "I miss you Ed."

Suddenly his eyes shot open, looking straight into my own. Except they weren't his eyes, they weren't dark brown. They were pitch-black. I screamed and shuffled back as far as I could from him, feeling as if he was looking at my soul.

I jerked up from my sleep and screamed, feeling tears fall down my cheeks. I was back in the clearing with the Pevensies and the beavers. A shot of pain coursed through my torso. I fell back in to the snow just as I saw Susan and Peter hovering over me worriedly. "Alex, calm down. Ssh, it's just a dream. You're alright." Susan said soothingly as she held my hand, rubbing her thumb over my knuckles. I rolled on to my side, sobbing to myself. "You're okay. Tell us what the dream was about. Yeah?"

I remained silent. I didn't want to tell them my dream, not this time. I didn't really think they'd like to know what I saw really, not when they find out the state Edmund is in now. As Mrs Beaver came over to tend to my ribs again, all I could think of was that last image in my dream. The image of the black eyes that were there instead of Edmund's brown ones. They were _her_ eyes. They were the Witch's eyes.


	11. Crossing the world to meet Ol' Saint

_Hello everyone!_

_Here's your next update, earlier than I anticipated to be honest and super long as well. I hope you like this. Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter, that was the most reviews I've ever gotten for a chapter. Fourteen in total! :) And the names are **FelipeMarcusThomas, NarniaQueen and QueenofFantasy, Noel Ardnek, Sally Moore, Wouldn't you like to know, Anonymous, FeatherDaydreamer, Princess of Narnia 1192, Cupcake's4Ever **(Awesome name by the way)**, Unknown, EBE, EustaceJill4eva, XDurnames-Dark-FairyX **and **firefly. 1212. **You are all so awesome!_

_I am so happy! Yay!_

_Anyway, enough of my babble, on with the story!_

_Enjoy!_

_(Thank you for the review Emma, just altered it slightly. :))  
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_**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Crossing the world to meet Ol' Saint Nick**

I stared up at the sky as the sun began to rise in the west. I was just watching as the stars glowed like little mini suns and the constellations seemed to dance with each other as if they were alive. But how could stars be alive? That was just preposterous. How can stars be alive? It was about as silly as one person being important enough to actually save someone who was trapped in an ice cold cell, slowly dying from frostbite.

I didn't get any sleep for the rest of the night, considering it was me who suggested that we get some sleep. If I'm honest, I was too scared to go back to sleep and dream of Edmund in that cell again. Instead I stayed awake staring up at the sky waiting for the sun to rise, whilst the others went back to sleep. Last night after I woke up from my dream, I heard Mr and Mrs Beaver talking to each other in hushed voices. I think they were worried about me because they seemed to be praying to this Aslan person again. I still didn't know who this person was but now he seemed to be this "King" and some kind of god to the Narnians. I didn't want anyone to worry about me – they've got enough on their plate as it is – but I think it was getting harder for them to believe that I didn't need or want any of their help. I am fourteen years old for crying out loud! I'm pretty sure I'm old enough to look after myself. Besides, my Dad trusted me to stay in the house on my own, so if he can trust me and allow me to do that, why can't everyone else?

The sun was up in the sky now and it was shining bright yellow rays across the snow through the tree tops. I decided to get up and pack for our journey. The others were trying to get me to tell them my dream last night but I didn't want to in case I scared Lucy and also because it scared me too. Just the memory of Edmund's eyes as her haunting black ones was enough to scare me for a life time. My chest screamed painfully in protest as I began to sit up on my fur coat. I clenched my eyes shut and wished the pain would just leave me alone for one day.

The others began to wake up alongside me, their eyes blinking dazedly as the sun shone. I didn't wait for them to fully wake up properly and started to pack up my things. It was best to get going as soon as possible so that we wouldn't get caught and that it would be quicker to save Edmund. Lucy yawned and rubbed her eyes groggily.

"Morning everyone," she greeted sleepily, before letting a shiver shake through her little body. "Brr, it's a bit cold today."

"Well, we have been sleeping on snow Lu. Of course it's going to be cold." Susan said irritably before she sneezed loudly. It didn't look like everyone was going to be in the best of moods today. Luckily Peter was more of a morning person. He just woke up, stretched and then started to pack up. Mr and Mrs Beaver were up fixing up some jam sandwiches for breakfast. Not really what I'd call a breakfast but what can we do? Mr Fox was up and about but every now and then I would still hear a painful whimper. Whenever I asked him if he was okay, he just smiled and nodded before limping on his way around our little campsite.

Not before long, after we had fully woken up and had our breakfast, we were covering up the remains of the fire and heading out. Mr Fox went on his way to recruit more Narnians to fight against the White Witch in Aslan's army. I was a little worried for him. I mean what if he got caught by the Witch? Would he end up in the same place as Edmund? Or would he end up the other way, as a stone statue? I shuddered at the thought and decided not to think about it anymore.

I walked behind the Pevensies on my own, not really wanting to talk. If I started to talk then I would only start to worry and no doubt start crying. That was how bad I felt this morning. I wondered what was happening to Edmund right now. Was he still frozen in that cell? Most likely, yes. Even I felt cold there and I was just in a dream. Did the Witch bewitch him? I've certainly read enough stories about witches to know that that can happen. Even Shakespeare knew that witches can do that. He certainly wrote enough about them! Has the witch already killed him and I wasn't in fact there with him in the cell, at all? Tears pricked my eyes at the thought. He couldn't be dead. We'd feel it if he was dead wouldn't we? That gut instinct everyone gets telling us that he's gone. Or did he escape? I surely hope he did but somehow in the back of my mind I knew there was no chance of that.

I shook my head of my thoughts. I can ponder over them later. I soon realised that I was starting to lag behind the Pevensies so I quickly hurried my pace to catch them up. Somehow, now I kind of wish I hadn't. When I fell in to step behind them, they were muttering about me. I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from lashing out at them. Instead, I decided to listen to what they have to say.

"Something is seriously wrong with Alex I know it!" Susan whispered to Peter worriedly. He scoffed in denial, shaking his head.

"Just because she had a nightmare last night, doesn't mean there's anything wrong with her." Peter hissed back in a hushed voice. Lucy held on to his hand and skidded slightly on the snow.

"She's been having nightmares for months! That's not normal -"

"Oh and how would you know if she's been having nightmares for months?" Peter snapped under his breath. Susan narrowed her eyes at him.

"Surely you've heard her screaming during the night back home? There's just a wall separating both of your rooms." Susan hissed at him. "You know as well as I, that having nightmares at her age is not normal. Even Mrs Macready knew!"

"Who cares what the Macready thinks?" Peter scoffed incredulously. "She didn't care about us. She barely saw us during the time we were there. I'm pretty sure the only ones who even thought about us were Ivy and Betty."

"You know that's not true. We've been gone from the Professor's house for two days already. They're bound to be worried." Susan said in a sort of smug tone. She didn't even seem to care about whether I heard her or not.

"Well, if there's something wrong with Alexandra, what do you suggest we do?" Peter said quietly. I smiled slightly at Peter. Even though he was still talking about me, at least he had the courtesy to stay quiet about it.

"I don't know. All I know is this wouldn't have ever happened if her father hadn't been foolish enough to leave her on her own in that house. You've heard the stories of what happens to people left on their own. They go flipping barmy!" Susan whispered to Peter and Lucy.

I stared at her with my mouth open. Tears were gathering in my eyes threatening to spill over. Susan thought I was crazy. And what was it with everyone talking about my father? He hasn't done anything wrong to me. So what if he left me on my own in the house? He had no other choice. My grandmother couldn't look after me and he had to go off to the war. And anyway I'm fine with being on my own, I'm mature enough. I narrowed my eyes at the back of Susan's head, wondering what in the world gave her the right to talk about my father like that. I cleared my throat loudly behind them, watching them jump in surprise. I smiled inwardly at the sight, feeling some satisfying pleasure at knowing that I scared them.

They stared at me like children who had just been caught with their hands in the biscuit tin. Susan stared wide eyed at me with her mouth open like a goldfish. "Alex…I -"

"Is that really what you think of me Sue?" I asked quietly, trying to keep my seething anger at a bare minimum.

"Of course I don't Alex. I'm just worried about you. We all are." She said with a sad look, glancing at the others for confirmation.

"Well don't. I don't need you to worry about me. Worry about Edmund if you must, but not me. I'm fine." I said irritably before pushing past them and walking hurriedly ahead of them. They were really starting to annoy me with their incessant worrying. If only Edmund was here to tell them to back off. I remained silent as we walked for what felt like hours or in fact days in the snow. I wasn't sure exactly how long we've been walking; all I knew was that it took a long time. I was cold and shivering in my furry coat, my nose was running and red, and my feet were numb with cold. I couldn't feel my toes or my fingers. I kept going through ideas in my mind on how to get back at the Witch for making it so flipping cold. She must've lived in Antarctica before she came to Narnia.

The sun was in its highest peak in the sky by the time Mr and Mrs Beaver stopped for a rest at the top of a cliff ledge. It overlooked a vast, baron, snowy wasteland. Despite it looking uninhabitable, it was beautiful to say the least. I stared in awe across the land, wishing to look at this land for the rest of my life. I wonder what it must've looked like in the summer.

"Now, Aslan's camp is near the Stone Table which is just across the frozen river." Mr Beaver said as he pointed towards the horizon.

"River..?" Peter choked as he stared at Mr Beaver in shock. My eyes were wide and my mouth was open in amazement.

"Oh the river's been frozen solid for a hundred years. There's no way it would just suddenly melt today." Mrs Beaver said reassuringly. I didn't think Peter seemed at all worried about the river. I think he was a bit worried about how far we'd have to walk to _get_ to the river.

"It's so far…" Peter breathed, his eyes holding a look of fear in them.

"It's the world, dear." Mrs Beaver said soothingly before smiling. "Did you expect it to be small?"

"Well, I suppose we are in a wardrobe." I said before I even had a chance to think about what I was saying. I blinked. "Wow that does sound weird saying that, doesn't it Lu?"

"Yes, it does." Lucy said with a frown. "I forgot we were in a wardrobe." I frowned to myself before shrugging it off. Susan turned to Peter and gave him a look that probably said, "_Now do you wish you had listened to me?" _before stalking off towards the end of the cliff and finding a way to climb down. We decided to follow her down to the ground, our feet occasionally slipping on icy ledges or our hands accidently pulling off icicles as we went.

We decided to rest a while in a small cave at the base of the cliff for lunch, which were apples and buttered bread followed by an ice cold drink of water. It took us ages to melt the water, hugging it to our bodies so that our body heat, or whatever's left of it, would warm it up. In the end I just didn't bother with it.

"Mr Beaver?" Lucy asked out of the blue. The furry animal looked up and smiled warmly at her.

"Yes Lucy?"

"What was Narnia like in the summer?" Lucy asked. "Mr Tumnus said that in the spring, the fauns would dance with the dryads in a big field and have a party."

"Oh, you mean the Summer Solstice? What a day! Do you remember darling when we attended last time?" Mr Beaver said happily to his wife. Mrs Beaver perked up in excitement.

"Oh, it was marvellous!" Mrs Beaver beamed before turning to Lucy. "I will tell you Lucy dear, if you ever have the pleasure to attend the Summer Solstice party on the Dancing Lawn, then you will feel like you could dance forever. But bear in mind that you will probably sleep the next day away, you'll be so tired."

"We Beavers would build docks by Cauldron Lake in the summer so that all of the young children could go swimming in the lake and then dry off once they were done." Mr Beaver said proudly, his beady black eyes glazing over as if remembering a happy day from his memories.

"Why is it called "Cauldron Lake"?" I asked curiously. It seemed to me like a creepy name to call a lake.

"Well, the water in the lake is really warm and there is hot springs around the edge which steam like little cauldrons." Mr Beaver said flippantly, waving his paw in the air. I still wasn't sure about the name but I decided to not ponder on the thought. Mr and Mrs Beaver stood up on their back legs and, to my amazement, started to waltz around the cave, laughing and giggling as they went. I smiled and started to clap an upbeat tune. They soon started to dance a very vigorous jig. It looked like a mix between an Irish jig and a Scottish one. I laughed along with them and I noticed the Pevensies smiling and giggling as well. Lucy stood up and skipped over to Mr Beaver, taking his paws and danced along with him happily, even though she was stooped over a bit. It looked a lot of fun. If this is what it looked like now, I could only imagine what it must be like in the summer.

We soon started to walk across the land again, out in the open, listening to the crunching sound of snow under our feet. It really was kind of peaceful. We walked for hours and hours along the snow leaving trails of footprints behind us. As the sun moved across the sky, we began to slow down. We were so tired by the end of it. The Beavers however, were zooming ahead of us. _I wonder if their fur is hiding little rockets or somethi__ng, _I thought with a chuckle to myself.

"Hurry up humans!" Mr Beaver called back to us as he and his wife waddled ahead of us. Lucy skidded slightly on the ice.

"If he tells us to hurry up one more time, I'm going to turn him in to a big fluffy hat!" Peter muttered to us as we walked. It was weird really, because I was thinking about nearly the same thing. Apart from I was thinking slippers to keep my feet warm.

"Come along humans, while we're still young!"

"He is getting a little bossy." Lucy sighed as Peter picked her up and gave her a piggy back.

"No! Behind you, it's her! Run!" Mrs Beaver suddenly shrieked. I froze and spun around to look behind me. I paled. Mrs Beaver was right. The White Witch was gaining on us in what seemed to be a sleigh. I spun around and ran after the Pevensies as fast as I could go. My heart was beating fast in my chest, verging on painful, as my feet skidded slightly on the snow. There was no way we would be able to outrun the sleigh. Suddenly, my foot skidded on an icy patch of the snow and fell with a yelp to the ground. I heard a crunching sound, followed by my very painful screams. My chest burned with pain and I couldn't breathe, I couldn't move. The Witch was going to find me and then slit my throat. Just like in my dream.

I heard a hurried pair of footsteps running towards me. It must've been the Witch. She's found me. All of a sudden, Peter appeared out of nowhere and without a word, he scooped me up in his arms and carried me across the snow. I could see black spots in my vision. They were growing bigger and pretty soon I knew I was going to be unconscious. It had happened to me so many times that I had sort of expected it. Peter ran in to what seemed to be woods, before turning and skidding in to a little mini cave. I was struggling to breathe, filling the little hole with ragged gasps. Peter covered my mouth with his hand, leaving me to breathe through my nose. Every time I breathed in my chest burned like I was breathing in fire.

The sound of loud booming footsteps echoed above us, until suddenly there was a shadow in front of us on the snow mound. The shadow seemed big and circular, not what I thought a Witch would looked like, unless the Witch was a stooped over hag with a big green wart on the end of her nose. I held weakly on to Peter's hand, in fear that we might get caught. Just as I thought the Witch would find us, I heard a sigh and the shadow disappeared. We all slowly let out a sigh of relief.

"I suppose I'd better go see then…" Peter whispered silently to us as he shifted under me. Mr Beaver put one of his paws in his arms and pushed him back.

"No, you mean nothing to Narnia dead." Mr Beaver said bravely, his chest puffing out slightly like he was steeling himself from the fear of her. Mrs Beaver stared at her husband worriedly.

"Well, neither do you Beaver." She whispered the heartfelt sentence. She reminded me of the wives and mothers back home when the men were going off to war. Especially of Mrs Pevensie when we were at the train station being sent off for evacuation. I looked away from them sadly, wishing for them to be happy.

"Thanks dear." Mr Beaver whispered sadly, before nuzzling his nose against hers and leaving the hideout. There was a faint buzzing noise in my ears, like a million bees in a beehive. I was getting a headache. My chest still burned painfully and I could feel my eyes drooping. _You stay awake, girl! You are not ready to go yet._ My grandmother's voice told me sternly. I turned my head to Peter. He looked at me worriedly.

"Alex, what's wrong?" he whispered. I couldn't to get the words out. So instead I spoke the wordlessly silently through my lips.

"_I can't breathe. Tell Ed I'm sorry…" _I repeated this four times, hoping and wishing that Pete understood me. My eyelids slid shut as Pete shook me slightly to try and wake me up.

"Alex? Alex, wake up. Wake up!" he hissed under his breath. Everything sounded far away and muffled. Worried little whispers surrounded me, followed by an excited call. Something was moving me around, but I couldn't feel any pain. This was bliss. No pain at all. I could just peacefully sleep away to my heart's content. Everything seemed a slight shade lighter and the ground underneath me felt chilled, like an ice cream on a hot summer's day. I began to dream of home. Of the times when I played in the attic with Ed, when we played tag in the playground at the park, when we all used to go to the sweet emporium on Baker's Street and we'd buy Mint Humbugs, Rhubarb and Custards, Turkish Delight, Sugar Mice and so much more. My favourite were always the Sherbet Lemons. Just the taste of the lemon shell and the zingy tang of the sherbet inside always left a sweet taste in my mouth. What I wouldn't give to just taste that one last time.

"Quickly," A muffled voice ordered. "Pour a drop of this in to her mouth before she's too far gone." Someone pulled my mouth open and a drop of warm liquid landed on the tip of my tongue. It felt warm and tasted sweet as it slid to the back of my throat, somehow feeling like a mouthful by the time it got there. I swallowed it and felt it zoom through my system, warming everything up, leaving this tingling feeling over my ribs where they were broken. The buzzing noise was fading and the light shade in my eyes was getting brighter. I didn't feel tired anymore. It felt like I was waking up from a refreshing sleep. Slowly, my eyes opened to meet a blinding light shining in my eyes. I almost thought that it was Peter's torch in my eyes again, when suddenly a face peered over me.

He had very warm blue eyes with a white beard covering most of his face. Was he God? I always pictured him younger. He had rosy pink cheeks and a wide smile on his mouth as if he was happy to see me. But who was he? I've never met him in my life.

"Aha! Welcome back Daughter of Eve. It is so good to see you awake. You do have the prettiest eyes I have ever seen. Very much like your mother's." the man said warmly as he helped me sit up. Suddenly, I was bombarded by three pairs of arms hugging me from every direction.

"Alex you're alright! You're alright! You're alright!" Lucy squeaked happily in my ear, hugging me tightly around my chest. My chest didn't hurt at all. It was a miracle. _Hold up, wait. What if I'm dead?_ I thought suddenly as the Pevensies pulled away from me.

"Please tell me I'm not dead. Because that would mean that you're dead too and that would just be pointless." I said unsurely, casting suspicious looks at them all. They frowned and then gave me a wide smile.

"Of course you're not dead, silly." Peter laughed joyfully. "If you were dead, would you be able to see Father Christmas?"

I blinked at him. I spun my head quickly to the man with the rosy cheeks and the white beard and my jaw dropped. He was wearing a red and brown coat, with big black leather boots on his feet. Behind him there was a huge brown sack stuffed to the brim with toys, in the back of a large red sleigh. There was even two reindeer tied at the front of the sleigh.

"Oh my…you're…you're…" I stammered, watching as the old man started to chuckle. "Oh my goodness, you're Old Saint Nick!"

"Well, that's one of my names. My most commonly used names are either Father Christmas or Santa Claus. However, contrary to the stories I don't live in the North Pole, I only have two reindeer and I don't have elves to work for me." He replied happily.

"But how do you make all of the toys?" Lucy asked with wide eyes. Father Christmas laughed jovially as he turned around and pulled out the huge brown sack in the sleigh and putting it on the ground in front of me.

"Imagination of course, Lucy." He said. "Why else do you write letters to me at Christmas time?"

Lucy smiled widely at him whilst I stood up next to Pete, marvelling at the way it didn't hurt me at all. Lucy stepped forward to him as he rummaged in his pockets and pulled out a crystal bottle. "This Lucy is the juice of the fire flower. One drop will cure any injury." He gave the bottle to Lucy and glanced at me. "That was how your ribs were fixed."

I smiled gratefully at him as he bent over and pulled out a small beautiful dagger, handing it to Lucy. To my side, I felt Peter stiffen slightly. I glanced at him to see a frown on his face. I shook my head as a small smile appeared on my mouth. "Now I trust you won't ever have to use this."

"Thank you, sir." Lucy replied politely and returned to stand next to me, a large dopey smile on her little face.

"Peter," Father Christmas called as he rummaged in the brown bag again. Peter stepped forward nervously, after Susan and I gave him a slight nudge. To my amazement, he pulled out a sword and a shield emblazoned with a large red lion on the front. As Peter pulled the sword out of the scabbard, it glinted in the sun and I noticed there was writing scratched in to the metal. "The time to use these may be near at time."

"Thank you, sir." Peter replied and returned to his place beside me. Susan frowned and turned to Father Christmas.

"I thought that battles were ugly affairs." Susan frowned. Father Christmas smiled and bent over the sack once more, pulling out a bow and quiver full of arrows as well as a small ivory horn in the shape of a lion's head.

"Indeed they are and it seems to me that you have no trouble with being heard." Susan blushed in embarrassment and looked at her feet. The jolly man lifted her hand and smiled. "But if there is ever a case where no one is near to listen, one blow on this horn and help will come and trust in this bow. It could very well save the lives of the ones you love if you just trust in it."

Susan nodded and smiled at him. The jolly man turned to me and smiled. "Alexandra." I froze. I wasn't expecting to get anything from him. I was never really sure I believed in Santa Claus because the first time I heard of his stories was in Primary School. My father rarely celebrated Christmas because he was always in a weird mood around the time, only ever letting me celebrate it if I went over to the Pevensies for Christmas dinner.

I stepped forward nervously with my hands behind my back and my feet shuffling in the snow. Father Christmas pulled out two little daggers with long sharp blades. "Now, Alexandra these are Sais, pretty useful in the middle of battle, very light and graceful but very, very sharp so be very careful when handling them. But they have other uses too, especially in the field of medicine." He gave me a little wink before he rummaged in his pockets. I was curious as to what he was searching for. "Aha! Here we go."

He pulled out a small amber glass vile which was as big as my little finger and he handed it to me. My eyebrows creased in confusion. "What is this for?"

"It's a little bottle of oil to help you open that little locket of yours." He said. I smiled widely and gasped. He knew! He knew I've been struggling to open it. "When you reach the camp, go to Aslan and ask him for help. Hopefully, your questions will be answered and everything will make a lot more sense."

I frowned at his message. What would make a lot more sense? I already knew what was in my locket. I already knew that there was a picture of my Dad in there. Why would that not make any sense? I thanked Father Christmas and stood in line with the others. Father Christmas heaved up the bag and dumped it in the back of the sleigh, turning around to us with a smile. "Well, I must be going now. I hope you arrive at Aslan's Camp safe and sound. With your presence here, Christmas can resume."

"I thought there was no Christmas in Narnia." Susan chirped up. Santa Claus nodded.

"You're right Susan, but with you all here, you are already beginning to weaken the White Witch's power. Winter's nearly over, it's going to be a pretty big Christmas this year." He smiled as he turned and clambered in to his sleigh. "Until next year, your highnesses and I hope you all stay on my nice list. Oh Lucy..?"

"Yes sir?" Lucy beamed with a smile.

"See if you can get your brother on my list too. It would be a shame if he didn't get presents for two years in a row." I chuckled to myself as Lucy stood to attention and mock saluted him.

"Yes sir! I'll make sure he's on that list by next year sir!" she giggled. Everyone laughed and Mr and Mrs Beaver patted her arm.

"I know you will. Oh Beavers, I'll see to fixing your house once I'm done delivering these presents."

"Oh thank you sir, thank you!" they beamed happily, smiling to each other.

With a happy laugh and a wave of his hand, Santa smiled and joyfully said. "Long live Aslan and merry Christmas!" The sleigh pulled away from us and we waved at him until he disappeared on the horizon.

"I told you he was real." Lucy giggled at Susan who just playfully rolled her eyes. I chuckled and turned to Peter. He wasn't smiling.

"Pete? What's wrong?" I asked nervously, hoping that his answer wasn't going to be bad.

"He said the White Witch's power was weakening and he said winter was almost over." He mused quietly before he stared wide eyed at us all. "You know what that means?"

I pondered on the thought and gasped. _No, he couldn't mean..?_

"No more ice!"


	12. We take a very cold bath

**_Hello!_**

**_Here is the next chapter. I had a little trouble writing this chapter because it brought back some very painful memories. I had almost drowned once when I was younger and I was trying to remember how it felt so that I could use it for Alex's experience so that's my explanation for the lateness of this chapter. _**

**_Thank you all for reviewing the last chapter I am so happy! Special thanks go to firefly12.12 for her unquestionable support and brainstorming sessions. They were awesome. :) Please review if you like this chapter. I love you all! _**

**_Enjoy!_**

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******The Affairs of the Heart**

**We take a very cold bath**

There was no time to lose. If what Peter said was right then we are going to be in so much trouble unless we get a move on. We ran and ran through the woods dodging and weaving through the tree trunks, leaping over icy boulders and landing in tufts of grass.

"Hurry guys! The snow is already beginning to melt!" I shouted as we hurried. I couldn't believe how well I was running; it seemed as if all of the weight on my shoulders had been lifted. I felt normal. No more broken ribs, no more pathetic me that has to be carried everywhere by her friends. Just plain old, independent me! It didn't even hurt to run anymore, aside from the odd stitch but not any fatal pain to go through.

"Alex, come on!" Lucy called back as she was dragged along by Peter. I pushed my legs harder, willing myself to catch up. The trees were beginning to thin and I could hear the sound of a river near us. We were definitely getting close. Suddenly, Peter skidded to a halt.

"Whoa! Stop!" he shouted suddenly throwing his arms out to stop us. I skidded slightly to a stop with Susan bumping in to me slightly.

"What's going on?" I gasped out, feeling the stitch in my side sting a little.

"Look!" he said pointing out in front of him. Susan and I peered around him and our jaws dropped. We were at the river, but we were also at the top of a forty foot cliff. And to top it all off there was only a small amount of ice left on the river to cross.

"The river's not going to melt today, huh Mrs Beaver?" I said with a raised eyebrow. She stared on at the river in disbelief before glancing at me.

"Well, how was I to know?" she said sounding slightly panicked.

"We need to cross now." Peter ordered as he pulled Lucy towards the edge of the cliff. I began to follow him being careful of the slippery edge. Susan stayed where she was, unsure of what to do.

"Can we just stop and think about this for a minute?" she said in a panicky voice.

"We don't have a minute!" Peter snapped at his younger sister. This was just like the night when Edmund ran away all over again…which was only yesterday. _Wow, it's been a long journey. _I thought to myself.

"I'm just trying to be rational." Susan said taken aback. Peter rounded on her.

"No, you're trying to be _smart. _As usual!" he said condescendingly. Susan blinked back a few tears and glared at her brother. "Now come on. We need to go!"

As quickly and carefully as we could we all began to follow Peter to the edge of the cliff and slowly climb down the side. I helped Mr and Mrs Beaver down since they were smaller than us and they had shorter legs.

"Come on Mrs Beaver. I won't drop you!" I called up to her as Mr Beaver and I reached the bottom, standing on the bank. "Come on! It's only a small amount to jump."

"Come on Darling! There are only a few more steps." Mr Beaver called as he stood underneath her with his arms outstretched.

"But it's so far down! I can't move, Beaver." She whimpered with her eyes closed tightly. I sighed before getting an idea. I walked over to Peter and the others who were testing the ice on the river. Every time that Peter gingerly pressed his foot on the ice, water squirted up like hot water out of a volcanic spring.

"Peter, we need your help. Mrs Beaver's too scared to come down." I sighed pointing at Mrs Beaver on the side of the cliff, grasping on for her dear life. Peter sighed and headed over to help Mrs Beaver down. I turned to Susan and Lucy with an uneasy look.

"So, how are we going to get across this then?" I asked quietly. Susan and Lucy shrugged their shoulders.

"I suppose we'll have to walk over somehow." Susan replied as her eyes began to search a path across the ice. My shoulders sagged.

"Great…I suppose it's too late to mention that I can't swim?" I sighed glancing at Susan from the corner of my eye.

Susan turned to me and then groaned. "Not you too, Lucy can't swim either."

"Right, well. We'll have to get over there quickly then." I said, gingerly pressing my foot on the ice. I jumped with a squeal as water squirted up my skirt. I heard a quiet chuckle behind me. I spun around and shot a glare at whoever was laughing at me. Peter was trying to stifle a giggle behind me. Mr Beaver shuffled forward and tested the ice with his tail giving it a firm _thwack!_ It didn't break away. Cautiously, Mr Beaver began to shuffle on to the ice, making it tilt slightly before it levelled.

Mrs Beaver giggled. "_You've _been sneaking second helpings haven't you Beaver?" Mr Beaver glanced sheepishly over his shoulder with a mischievous grin.

"Well, ya' never know when you're next meal will be ya' last!" He turned around and shuffled out further on to the ice, but before he went I could've sworn I heard him mumble "_Especially, with your cooking." _I stifled a giggle as we all began to step on to the ice after Mr Beaver. The ice was slippery but we had to move as quickly as possible.

"Come on!" I called back as I carefully walked further along the ice. The others slowly began to follow me as we gingerly pressed our feet down on the ice and shuffled along.

"If only mum knew what we were doing…" Susan muttered behind us at the back of the group. Peter rounded on his sister again and snapped at her.

"Well mum isn't here!" This was starting to get ridiculous. Couldn't everyone just stop arguing for once? We had a lot more serious things to be focusing on than petty squabbling.

"Guys, stop arguing! This isn't helping us get across the river, is it?" I snapped at them as I skidded slightly on a wobbly bit of ice.

"Oh no, look! They've found us!" Lucy shrieked suddenly and pointed to the top of the melting waterfall above us. I looked up to see four rabid wolves sprinting along the ice, snarling and snapping their muzzles at us as they went.

"Hurry!" Peter exclaimed as he pushed Lucy in front of him and shuffled forward quickly. We were too slow. By the time we got halfway across the ice, the wolves had already gotten to the other side, snarling and baring their teeth at us. I skidded to a stop, my eyes fixed on the wolf in front. His eyes were black, just like the eyes of _her _in my dream. It was like I was Red Riding Hood and I was facing the Big Bad Wolf. Except with a more negative outcome; I could picture it now. This wolf's powerfully, strong jaws ripping me to pieces and then starting on the others.

"I wouldn't move if I were you." growled the wolf, one of the other wolves in the background snapping his teeth at us. I flinched. Mr Beaver, the brave little creature he is, ambled in front of us all and growled at the wolves. One of the wolves in the background leapt forward and tackled Mr Beaver in to the ice. I flinched again and let out a small scream for him. The leader of the pack turned his gaze on me and a small half smile began to grow across his face. I paled as my hands began fumbling for my Sais.

"Peter! Gut him while ya' still have the chance!" Mr Beaver yelped as the wolf pressed his claws in to Mr Beaver's plump side. I glanced at Peter to see him holding his sword out in front of him, visibly shaking with fear. He looked ready to run away from the vicious wolves in front of us.

"Peter, just because some man in a red coat gave you a sword doesn't mean you're a hero! Just drop it before you get killed!" Susan begged her brother trying to push his sword down and out of harm's way. The leader of the pack (who I deduced as Maugrim) snickered a laugh.

"Smart girl," he sneered as he took a menacing step forward. I flinched and aimed my Sais towards him. This had to stop now. They were bullies and there was no _way _I was going to be intimidated by an overgrown fleabag.

"L-leave them a-alone!" I stuttered trying my best to give them my worst glare in the world. Maugrim snapped his gaze towards me, a small wheezy snigger escaping his muzzle.

"Oh look boys! This one's shaking like a drowned cat. Do we scare you?" Maugrim stepped forward again. I took a step back.

"No!"

"I think we do…Do you know what we do to little drowned cats?" The wolves behind Maugrim exchanged glances and smirks before laughing. I didn't think it was funny.

"Leave her alone!" Peter snapped at the wolves, stepping forward slightly to pull me behind him, protecting me. Bless his soul. Honestly, what would I do without him?

"Hush little king. The wolves are talking." Maugrim sneered at Peter, a small growl underlying his taunt. He turned back to me. "So little one, tell us the truth. Are you afraid of us?"

I took a deep breath and forced myself to not stammer. "Y-you don't scare m-me!" _Huh, why do I even try?_ I thought in my head bitterly. I couldn't even speak properly without picturing myself in the wolves' jaws all bloody and broken up.

"The stammer says different." Maugrim tipped his head to the side. It looked like he was looking at me like I was a piece of meat - a piece of raw, walking, talking, _live_ meat.

"Just kill him!" Mr Beaver shrieked as he tried to wriggle away from the wolf.

"All my majesty wants is for you to take your brother and go," Maugrim said. It sounded so believable. We could just take Ed and go home. If only it was true.

"He's lying! Kill him!" Mr Beaver cried and Mrs Beaver stifled a sob.

"What's your choice little king? We won't wait forever and neither will the river." Maugrim cackled. A sound of a crack echoed in the air and a spray of water showered over us. I glanced up in horror. The frozen waterfall was going to break and we would be overwhelmed with gallons of water. We'd all drown.

"Peter the river!" Susan shrieked pointing up in horror. There was panic in Peter's eyes, I could tell. What was he going to do? He couldn't let us all die. He had to think of something quick.

"Grab them!" Maugrim barked at the other wolves behind him. They bounded forward towards me, teeth bared and snarling. _Oh God, they're going to kill me! _I thought hysterically as I screamed. One of the wolves leapt up and tackled me on to the ice, sending us both into to the icy depths below.

Have you ever been in a dark underground tunnel? Well, imagine being stuck halfway through that whilst it's collapsing on top of you. The dust enters your lungs and the heavy rocks crush you so you can't move. Imagine that and that would only be half of what it feels like to drown. I couldn't even think of anything but the cold water. I couldn't breathe. It was like my lungs were in a vice and they were getting tighter and tighter. The cold water was stabbing my skin with little icy knives numbing every one of my senses until killing off all of my thoughts. Oh God, it was so cold!

Everything was going dark. I had to try and get up to the surface but my legs wouldn't work. They wouldn't move – I was paralysed. I could feel myself being swept along in the current. I kicked my legs as hard as I could try to reach the surface. I didn't want to die. I was only fourteen!

My head broke the surface and I gasped desperately for air before sinking deep underneath the water. I had to get to shore. I kicked my legs as hard as I could towards what I thought was the riverbed. My hands were clutching out on to frozen slippery roots and then they slipped out of my grasp. I couldn't hold on to anything, I was going to be swept off to the sea. _Oh God, I'm going to drown, _I thought as I went underwater. There wasn't anything that I could do to stop. The river was disappearing on the horizon and the current was rushing faster towards it. It was another waterfall. I was going to go off the edge.

"Help!" I gasped. There was barely any sound coming out in my voice. I was almost at the end of the river. I closed my eyes, waiting for the inevitable end.

Suddenly I felt a tug on my coat. I opened my eyes in shock and I gasped. There was a red fletched arrow pinning me to the riverbed, stopping the current from dragging me off. I heard footsteps on the edge of the riverbed.

"Hurry, get her out quickly." Susan commanded. I sighed in relief as I saw Peter, the Beavers and Susan come into my sight. Peter knelt down on the riverbed, grabbing hold of me and the Beavers began to pull the arrow out of my coat. My teeth began to chatter and my body began to shiver violently. It seemed even colder as Peter began to drag me out of the water.

"P-P-Peter!" I could barely speak. Peter wrapped me in a warm hug and began to rub my arms to warm me up.

"Ssh, Alex it okay you're safe now." He said soothingly. I nodded and cuddled into him, trying to warm myself up. It wasn't working. He was as sopping wet as I was. I curled myself up into a ball to keep as much warmth in. I turned to Susan and smiled as best as I could despite shivering like a leaf in the wind. The bow she had gotten from Father Christmas was held tightly in her hand.

"Sue! You…you s-saved me! Thank you!" I gasped as she knelt down beside me. Susan blushed, tipping her head to the side and shrugging her shoulders slightly.

"Well, I couldn't just let you die now could I? I'll never find out if you fancy Ed or not." She said with a wry smile. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. _Of course…_I thought as a small grin appeared on my mouth.

"It was only a joke Sue! I don't fancy Ed." I sighed as I pulled away from Pete to give Susan a hug. She hugged me back tightly, like she was relieved. "Where's Lucy?"

I could feel Susan tense. I pulled away from her with a frown. Susan stared in horror at Peter. "Peter, where is Lucy?"

"I thought she was with you!" Peter exclaimed in fear. He stood up and glanced around frantically, searching for his baby sister. "Lucy! Lucy, where are you?" I staggered up and began to look around as well. If something happened to little Lucy…

"Lucy!" I called out. Everyone began to shout desperately over the noise of the river in the hope that Lucy could hear us. I stared at the horizon. What if Lucy fell off the edge? What if she was being swept off to the sea as we speak? I looked at Peter and Susan. "You'd don't think she…?" The two siblings exchanged a worried glance.

"Has anyone seen my coat?" a voice called suddenly, making me jump in surprise. We spun around to see little Lucy stood shivering and dripping wet. With sighs of relief, we ran and pulled Lucy in to a group hug.

"Lucy, we thought you'd drowned!" Peter exclaimed as he hugged his baby sister tight to warm her up.

"See, your brother has you well looked after." Mr Beaver smiled as he ambled over to give Lucy a hug.

"And it looks like you won't need those coats anymore." Mrs Beaver beamed as she pointed ahead of her. I followed her gaze up towards the branches of the trees. There was a rosy pink blossom growing on the end of the branch with earthy green leaves growing around it. The frost was melting and dripping from it in to a lush green patch of grass. The snow was melting away. Spring was finally here.


	13. You never told me Aslan was a pussycat!

_Hello!_

_I have a special chapter here for you, faster than usual. I hope you all have had a nice easter and I hope you all don't get sick with all of the easter eggs. Thank you all for the reviews for the last chapter, especially my consistent reviewers Noel Ardnek and FelipeMarcusThomas. Your support as well as everyone else's is what's driving this story on. Thank you!_

_I have some exciting news for you all. My dear friend Firefly.1212 and I have collaborated on our stories and my character Alex has made an appearance in Firefly's story Worthy. Please read her story it is awesome! I will warn you now that Alex might not necessarily turn out like that, but it is sort of like a preview of the relationship between her and Edmund in the future. Also, Firefly's character will be make an appearance in my story sometime in the future. So keep watch!_

_I hope you like this chapter and will review. I am hoping to at least get near my 100 reviews target. I hope you all enjoy the rest of the holidays until we all get dragged back to school on Tuesday. Have fun on Friday too, curtesy of Prince Wills and Kate Middleton. We all get a day off! Wahoo!  
_

_Enjoy!_

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**The Affairs of the Heart **

**You never told me Aslan was a pussycat!**

The sun rays shone brightly through the gaps in the tree tops like little spotlights on a big stage. The path in front of us was like a rainbow of colours and shades. The smell of pine trees filled the air as we walked through the woods. It was beautiful everywhere I looked. Every little detail in the woods seemed to be accentuated a little more by the sunlight.

We had been walking through the woods for two hours, drying off from our unplanned dip in the river earlier. The fur coats that we had "borrowed" from Professor Kirke's wardrobe had long since been ditched, after taking the presents from Father Christmas out of the pockets. I had tied my Sais around my waist using a strip of cloth that I had cut from the fur coat. Well, I didn't think Professor Kirke was one to wear fur coats. I had also tied my little vial of oil to the chain holding my locket around my neck. Susan, Lucy and I had also taken off our soaking wet cardigans and our socks and shoes, leaving us wearing our shirts un-tucked and drying off quickly. We strolled leisurely through the woods relishing in the relief that we were still alive. I figured that we didn't actually have to rush to get to the camp. Mr and Mrs Beaver were laughing and smiling as they stared around at the birds and the trees in the woods. Mr Beaver shuffled over to a patch of Bluebells and picked up a punch, giving them to his wife with a smile. It was so sweet to watch.

"Why are you so scared of wolves, Alex?" Susan asked quietly walking in line with me. I sighed feeling my fingers start to twitch. I could tell that the others were listening in. What would be the point in lying to them about it? They had all seen me stumble with my words when we were facing the wolves.

"When I was little I had a dream where I was little Red Riding Hood. My Grandma had told me the story before I had fallen asleep and there was a storm that night." I could remember the night as if it was yesterday; little five year old me, staying over at my grandmother's house for the night, when a flash of light came in through the window. "She had this picture of an arctic wolf hanging on the wall that she took when she travelled the world. This wolf that she found was in the north of Alaska and it had been running wild through the villages killing most of the cattle during the night. The villagers killed it the night after the picture was taken."

"That's horrible." Lucy gasped, looking like she was about to cry. Peter gave her a small squeeze on her hand and picked her up to give her a piggyback. Lucy had always been interested in wildlife.

"I know." I agreed sadly. "When my grandmother managed to print the picture on to paper she showed it to the villagers. One of the old women there thought my grandmother was crazy. She said that the wolf was evil and because it's image had been copied on to paper, its evil nature would follow the owner. Grandmother thought it was all nonsense and brought it home. During the night of the storm there was a flash of light which lit up the picture. I couldn't sleep that night so I was always awake so when the lightning lit up the picture it looked as if the wolf had blood around its mouth. I screamed for my grandmother but when she switched the light on the wolf looked normal. She said it was just a trick of the light and told me to go back to sleep."

"That must have been scary." Susan said sympathetically. I nodded. No one had believed me when I told them that the picture was evil. No one listens to children. I looked at all of the beautiful trees and the colours of the leaves and the blossoms. If this was what Narnia looks like as winter is ending, imagine just what it will look like in the summer. I would love to live here for the rest of my life. I could just imagine my life here; living a little cottage by a river, surrounded by birds and rabbits and flowers. Like something out of a fairy tale. And I would invite the Pevensies to visit. It would be perfect!

The trees began to thin until there was a close at the edge of the forest. When we reached it and stopped staring out at the sight before us. There was a vast field covered in lush green grass that didn't even seem affected by the melting snow. It was a green that looked fresh, like the type of green you see on a granny smith apple. The sky above it was the brightest and clearest blue I had ever seen in my life. It was the same sky blue like in my dream of the tree in Professor Kirke's garden.

"Oh wow! It's beautiful!" I gasped. The others turned back to me with wide grins on their faces.

"Come on Alex!" Peter called waiting for me to catch up. I hurried after them as they continued up the grassy hill. The grass was soft and gentle, tickling my ankles and cushioning my bare feet as I ran. As we reached the top of the hill the sight below caused us all to stop and stare in awe.

"There it is! We've finally reached Aslan's Camp!" Mrs Beaver beamed excitedly, almost jumping about by Mr Beaver's side. "Beaver look! We're here!"

"I know darling." replied Mr Beaver with a grin. They began to waddle down the hill and we followed slowly. The camp looked absolutely magnificent! There were huge gold and red tents with flags blowing about in the wind on top of them. However, even though the tents were incredible, that wasn't what caught my attention. There were creatures walking around, making armour and weapons, stitching together chainmail and training as if it was the most natural thing to do.

These creatures seemed out of a fairy tale or out of my Greek Myths book. There were Centaurs, Fauns, talking Panthers, Jaguars, Siberian tigers, Griffins and so many more. It was such a beautiful sight. It felt like a dream, like any minute now I was going to wake up and I'd be back home and there would be no war and my dad would be back and my grandmother was still alive. Right, what was I thinking? My grandmother was dead, my father was still away at war and I was in a magical land with the Pevensies staring like a fool at mythical creatures.

Somehow, that didn't make sense either.

We strolled along a stream, curving around the camp until we had crossed to the other side. Blossom leaves drifted in the air, twirling around us and tickling my cheekbones. I smiled following the petals as they all converged in together to form a figure with long hair and a fluid-like body. The figure waved its hand towards Lucy who smiled and waved back. I stared in awe as the figure dispersed and floated away. _How can that happen? Wouldn't some of the petals get lost?_ I thought with a smile as I followed others as they entered the camp.

A trumpet sounded in the air. I jumped and stared up at a centaur standing on a cliff proudly, blowing in to the instrument, announcing our arrival. Some of the creatures stopped working and looked up at us as we walked by. I began to feel nervous. I never did feel comfortable with people looking at me.

"Why are they all staring at us?" Susan mumbled, trying to look like she was smiling at everyone. Lucy chuckled and glanced at her older sister.

"Maybe they think you look funny," Lucy said cheekily, making everyone smile. Peter and I tried to stifle our giggles but Susan shot us a look and rolled her eyes. Mr and Mrs Beaver led us towards the head of the camp and the biggest tent in the whole area. This must have been the tent where this "Aslan" stayed. _How big is this bloke to have a tent this big?_ I thought with a frown. There was a Centaur with dark skin and black hair was stood like a guard beside the entrance to the huge tent. He took one look at us, his gaze lingering on me for a second longer than the others and puffed out his chest. It was strange to look at a centaur. I mean centaurs are creatures that are half-men and half-horse. What's not weird about that?

Peter unsheathed his sword and nervously raised it in the air. "We h-have come to s-see Aslan!"

Silence fell all around us suddenly as all of the creatures around us knelt before the tent, bowing their heads. Even the centaur in front of us bowed his head towards the tent. I exchanged a glance with the others who were looking just as confused as me before looking back at the tent's entrance.

A moment later the entrance flap opened and out stepped a paw. I blanched. Within seconds, a huge Lion walked out of the tent casting his dark amber eyes on us all and shaking his shaggy mane that was framing his cat face. The majestic lion walked gracefully along until he was directly in front of us. The centaur behind the lion straightened up and eyed me suspiciously. I didn't like it. What was his problem? I haven't done anything bad.

I felt a tug on my left arm. I turned to my left to see the others to see them knelt down before the lion. I hastily followed suit. I turned my head slightly to Mrs Beaver who was knelt beside me.

"You never told me Aslan was a Lion!" I hissed under my breath, casting a wary glance up at the centaur behind him.

"Well, I thought it would be obvious." Mrs Beaver whispered back to me innocently.

"Welcome Peter, Son of Adam. Welcome Susan and Lucy, Daughters of Eve. Welcome Miss Alexandra." Aslan greeted us in turn. I frowned as he welcomed me. "Welcome Beavers, you have my thanks. But where is the fourth?"

"That's why we're here sir," Peter spoke sadly as he stood up, the rest of us following him. The centaur narrowed his eyes at me and I shifted. Why was he looking at me? "We…er, we had a few problems along the way." Peter looked at his feet as he shifted under everyone's gazes. I felt sorry for him. It wasn't his fault really that Edmund was missing. Well, it was mostly mine. I mean I did shout at him and push him in the snow. I was horrible to him.

"How could this happen?" Aslan asked. We couldn't bring ourselves to say. Mr Beaver stared at us before shaking his head and stepped forward.

"He…betrayed them, your Majesty." He said gravely. The severity of Edmund betraying us only seemed to set in now. Gasps and whispers escaped from the creatures behind us.

"NO! What will we do?"

"We're doomed!"

"The Witch has bewitched the Son of Adam!"

The dark centaur behind Aslan snorted with a look of fury painted on his face. "Then he has betrayed us all!"

"No, that's not how it happened!" I exclaimed. The centaur narrowed his eyes at me, his hand moving to the hilt of the sword tied around his waist.

"Peace, Oreius." Aslan commanded calmly. The dark centaur calmed and straightened up. His hand however, remained tightly on his sword.

"It was my fault really." Peter mumbled. Susan put a hand on his shoulder in reassurance. "I was too hard on him."

"We all were." Susan spoke bowing her head in shame. I nodded my head in agreement.

"But sir, he's our brother." Lucy piped up, protesting in her unique subtle way. Aslan nodded sadly, turning to Lucy as his whiskers drooped in despair.

"I know, little one. But that's what makes the betrayal all the more worse." The majestic cat turned to us with a look of hope in his big cat eyes. "I will do what I can to save your brother but I will need you to be brave and salvage as much courage as possible. There is a war coming and we must be ready for it when it dawns. Now, rest. You have travelled far and must be weary. Piper, Ivy and Willow will show you to your sleeping quarters."

Three women with kind faces and wild hair walked up to us with friendly smiles on their faces. One of the women walked up to me and began to lead me out of the clearing and towards a separate part of the camp. She had long earthy-brown hair which was tied neatly in to a plaited crown around her head. She reminded me of one of the pictures in an Arthurian legend. I think the picture was of Guinevere, the future wife of Prince Arthur. I had always liked her in the stories, even if one of them did say she cheated on Arthur with Sir Lancelot, but she was only human. We all make mistakes. At a closer look at this woman, I noticed that she had a greenish tinge to her skin. It didn't look like she was unwell, more like it was normal for her.

On the outskirts of the camp were two tents. They were slightly smaller than Aslan's, but I guess that's because we would be sharing with each other. Peter was taken off to the furthest one in the camp whilst Susan, Lucy and I were taken to the closest one. When we entered our tent, I could've sworn that it was bigger on the inside. Two hammocks were strung up inside next to mats where we could put our weapons. On the other side of the tent was a small camp-bed, which was basically a mat with blankets and a cushion for a pillow. There was a mirror in the corner next to an open trunk which seemed to be filled with dresses like the ones the women were wearing.

"You may rest if you wish, but we have clothes ready for you to change into." One of the women spoke. She was blonde with the same greenish tinge to her skin as the other woman.

"Thank you er…?" Susan trailed off staring at the blonde woman with a curious smile.

"Oh, my name is Piper and this is Ivy." She introduced herself gesturing to the brown haired woman as she spoke her name. "We'll be looking after you during this time."

"Thank you, Piper and Ivy. Is there anywhere that we can have a wash? I'm afraid we've been travelling for a long time." Susan asked politely, Lucy nodded in agreement.

"Oh yes, right this way your highness." Piper gestured towards the entrance of the tent. Susan and Lucy eagerly followed. Lucy turned to me with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll be along soon, Lu. I just want to check my ribs first." I said gesturing to the mirror in the corner. Lucy nodded and quickly exited the tent after her sister. I turned to the mirror and untied the belt around my waist holding my Sais. In the background I noticed Ivy stood quietly, with her hands clasped sombrely in front of her. "So, Ivy is it?"

"Yes ma'am," She replied with a pleasant smile.

"I used to know someone called Ivy. She was Irish and she looked after us." I smiled as I remembered the feisty young cook at the Professor's mansion. It was strange. It was such a long time since I had seen her. I could barely remember what she looked like.

"Irish ma'am…?" she asked with a quirk of her eyebrow. I paused and turned back to her with a small smile.

"Sorry, I forget that you're not from England. Never mind," I muttered. I looked up at her curiously. "Pardon my asking but what are you?"

"Why, I'm a Dryad of course." She smiled a small flush of green rising to her cheeks.

"Oh, so that's why your skin's slightly green!" I gasped in surprise. She smiled in embarrassment. "Tell me about your kind. I've never met a Dryad before."

"Well, I'm quite young. So that's why I have green skin. I'm only one hundred and fifty years old." She smiled. My jaw dropped and a chuckle escaped my mouth.

"One hundred and fifty, that's ancient!" I giggled. She chuckled as well. I sat down on the little camp-bed and invited Ivy to sit with me.

"I'll have you know, that's quite young by dryad standards. You look like a sapling to us!" She chuckled.

"So, you're my age?" She nodded. I couldn't believe it, Ivy seemed so much older. It was by far one of the most surreal things to encounter. Well, apart from finding a magical land in the back of a wardrobe. That has got to be the weirdest thing on this planet. Ivy glanced at me.

"Can I ask you a question?" she asked quietly. I nodded. "What's it like travelling with their Royal Highnesses?" I frowned and stood up turning to the mirror.

"Oh…pleasant I suppose. Well apart from the occasional sibling arguments, but that's only to be expected. We're just normal kids." I stared at myself in the mirror. The girl in the reflection looked like she hadn't slept in weeks. There were dark circles under her eyes and her skin looked slightly paler than the last time I saw her. She also looked thinner.

The entrance flap suddenly opened and a faun dressed in chainmail and a linen shirt. He had furry goat legs and hooves on plain show. I had only seen pictures of fauns in my Greek Myths book, although they were named Satyrs instead.

"His majesty would like to see you ma'am," The faun nodded towards me. I exchanged a glance with Ivy, who shrugged her shoulders. I followed the faun out of the tent. As I walked, I felt stares on me from the many Narnians that I passed. Some of them were just curious glances before they went back to their work, others were not so friendly. I couldn't help but feel like I wasn't too welcome here. I'll have to ask Ivy about that later.

The faun stopped outside of Aslan's tent and gestured that I should go in. I felt my stomach clench with nerves. Taking a deep breath, I pushed open the flap and entered. The inside of the tent was very much like our one, except there weren't any hammocks or trunks of clothes. Aslan was laid on his front, his cat face looking up at me pleasantly.

"Welcome child." He greeted me as I walked in. I nodded back keeping my eyes fixed on the floor. I was too nervous to look up at him. Talking to a lion was pretty scary. He frowned at me and stood up. "Why are you so scared of me child?"

"You're a lion! Of course I'd be scared." I blurted out, feeling my body start to shake.

Aslan started to chuckle incredulously, "But I've known you your whole life. I've even known you before you were born."

"How is that possible? I've never met you before in my life." I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him. He shook his head, his mane flying around as he moved, as a little smile appeared on his face.

"But you have, my child. You just don't remember. Or you just don't recognise me." I remained silent. How could I know him? I didn't even know there were magical worlds before now. How could I know a Lion that lived in another world? "Tell me dear child, have you ever asked for help when you are in trouble?"

I frowned. What was he talking about? Was this what he wanted to talk to me about? "I don't need help. I'm fine by myself…"

Aslan frowned and a small growl rumbled from the beast. I stepped back in fear. "You are too proud Child. You must learn to let people help you when they think you need it. Otherwise they will not help you at all when you are in desperate need."

"What are you talking about?" I whispered quietly. I could feel my eyes starting to well with tears. I had a feeling in the back of my mind that I already knew. Aslan calmed and walked over to me. He nudged the side of my head and his rough tongue licked my cheek as a tear fell. I smiled slightly.

"Ask and you shall receive, Alexandra." He whispered in my ear. I sniffled and hesitantly reached out to touch his mane. It had a coarse overcoat but as I buried my hand deeper in his mane it became softer. I leaned my head into the huge cat and gently hugged him.

"I'm sorry Aslan. I'm really, really, really sorry." I sniffled, wiping my nose on my sleeve. Aslan pulled away, looking at me. He returned to his bed on the other side of the tent.

"Come, tell me about yourself." He smiled, padding the space beside him with his paw. "Tell me about your journey." I followed him and slowly sat down next to him, crossing my legs as I went. I began to talk. I told him about our world, about the war against the Germans, about the evacuation and about how we discovered the wardrobe. As the sun began to set we were still talking.

"It is late now Alexandra, you must have supper and rest. We shall talk again tomorrow." He smiled and nudged me towards the door. I smiled and exited the tent with a smile, feeling warm inside and hopeful for what tomorrow might bring.


	14. I get a present from my mother

_**Hello,**_

_**Here you are, another update for you and quite quickly too. (I want to beat Firefly.1212's update rate at the moment. ;) ) **_

_**More confusing things happening in this chapter but all part of my complex plotline just to feed your imaginations. I feel like some kind of Bond villian or maybe Margaret Atwood. Mwahaha! **_

_**Yeah, that was my villian laugh. I have broken through into the hundreds! This is completely awesome! Whoop! I'm having a little happy dance right this second. Thank you everyone! I'm now hoping that by the end of this story I get to at least 200 reviews, but you'll be happy to know that the end of this story is a very long way off. **_

_**Welcome to the story KarenClariz13. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you all who reviewed the last chapter. You are all awesome. If you're a bit confused at the beginning, Alex is in another dream.**_

_**Enjoy!**_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**I get a present from my mother**

Edmund was stood on top of a cliff looking over a rushing river worriedly. What if something happened to his family? Were they all okay? I was stood beside him quietly watching him as he worried. I really wanted to reassure him that we were, that we were safe in Aslan's Camp and we were coming up with a plan to rescue him but I knew he wouldn't hear. I was stuck in another one of my dreams where Edmund wouldn't hear me or see me at all. I was starting to wonder why he was in my dreams anyway, I mean at first I dreamt of my mother, then the witch and now Ed. Strange.

The river was flowing more freely now that the ice had melted completely and there was grass growing on the cliff around Edmund's feet. The cuffs were gone but there were harsh, bloody bruises covering his ankles and his wrists.

_Tweet! Tweet! Tweet, tweet! Tweet! _

Edmund turned his head to the sound to find a little robin hopping around beside my feet. Every time it jumped it flapped its left wing furiously, only to tumble on the floor. Edmund gave the little creature a sympathetic look and knelt to pick it up in his hands. The little bird stared at him warily as Ed tried to have a look at its wing.

"Hey, little fella," He whispered to it and stroked its feathered head with his thumb. "Ow!" His hand jumped away from the little bird and he peered at his thumb. There was a little cut on the pad as a little drop of blood oozed out. He wiped the blood away and turned to the bird. "Alright, I won't call you little. Huh, you're just like Lucy…and come to think of it Alex as well."

"Oi, you're only a bit taller than me." I retorted at Ed as he ignorantly carried on trying to look at the bird's wing.

"Are they alright? Are they safe?" he whispered to the little bird as he lifted the wing to see a bent feather on the underside of it. "You'd tell me if they were wouldn't you? Wait, can you talk?"

The little robin stared at him blankly and tweeted. He sighed and straightened out the feather. "What are you doing Edmund?" a sickly sweet voice spoke from behind us. We jumped and spun around. Towering over us with a glare stood the White Witch in all of her frosty glory. I could see Ed trembling out of the corner of my eye, his thumb pausing at the top of the little bird's head.

"N-nothing,"

The Witch narrowed her eyes at him and glanced at the little bird in his hands. "What are you doing with that bird?"

"H-He doesn't talk. He's okay. He just had a broken feather." Ed said hastily, his trembling increased slightly. The Witch smiled coldly.

"Well, you'd better let him go then." She spoke, a tone of concern in her voice. There was something off about it though. I didn't trust her and, by the looks of Ed, neither did he. Edmund looked at the little bird again and threw the little creature in the air. The bird flapped his wings and flew quickly away from us. The Witch smirked and thrust her wand up at the bird. In a flash, the bird plummeted to the floor. It landed with a _thump _in the grass, a look of fear on its little feathered face.

"No!" Ed exclaimed as he scooped up the stone bird in his hands. "Why did you do that? It was no threat to you!"

"It was fun." The Witch retorted curtly as three wolves appeared on the cliff carrying, to my horror, Mr Fox in one of their jaws. He looked in pain as he was suddenly thrown to the floor with a yelp. I stiffened in fear, hiding slightly behind Edmund. "Ah, Maugrim, I see we have a visitor."

Ed's eyes were turned red as he stared at the little stone bird in despair. I felt a little pang in my chest. He looked absolutely miserable. I glared at the back of the Witch's head. What I wouldn't give to be able to slap her now.

"He was rallying your enemies in the Shuddering Woods." Maugrim growled, casting a filthy glare at Mr Fox.

"Well, you were so helpful to my wolves last night perhaps you can help me now. Where are the children?" she said scathingly. Mr Fox struggled to his feet and bowed his head.

"Your majesty -"

"Oh, flattery won't get you anywhere Fox." The Witch rolled her eyes.

Mr Fox turned to the Witch and narrowed his eyes. "I don't mean to be rude, but I wasn't actually talking to you." My eyebrows went up in surprise and I smirked at the witch. _Serves you right, _I thought as Mr Fox turned to Edmund and bowed his head. Edmund stared at him in shock. I couldn't blame him really; I mean he was never with us when we met Mr Fox. The Witch cast a calculating look between the two of them, twirling her wand loosely in her hand like a baton until she pointed it threateningly at Mr Fox's neck. Edmund stiffened at the sight in fear.

"Where are the humans headed?" the Witch asked, an aura of calm in her voice. The Fox glanced at her, his eyes following the length of the wand. He stepped back slightly and kept his mouth shut. The witch brought back her wand ready to strike. In a split second as the Witch thrust her wand forward, Edmund dashed forward in front of the fox.

"No! The Beavers said something about a camp and that Aslan had an army there!" he blurted out desperately. I gaped at him in horror. He told her where we were. Had Ed been telling her where we were all of this time? I suddenly felt a cold weight on my shoulders. Edmund really had betrayed us, how could he?

"Thank you Edmund. I'm glad this creature got to see some honesty," The witch thanked Edmund as he reluctantly moved out of the way. _How could you? How could you betray us all? How could you do that Edmund after everything she's done to you?_ I thought scathingly as I glared at Ed. Edmund hung his head as Mr Fox sighed and shook his head. An evil glint appeared in the witch's eye as she raised her wand up again. "…before he dies!"

The witch thrust her wand at Mr Fox and just as he was about to flee, a flash of light and Mr Fox was turned to stone. Edmund and I cried out in horror. _Poor Mr Fox…_

I hated her. This so-called "Queen of Narnia" was evil. She was malicious, callous, the lowest of the low, a complete witch. How in the world could Edmund not see this? How could he betray us all to _her_? The Witch rounded her gaze on Edmund and suddenly backhanded him. Edmund grunted in pain as he stumbled backwards towards me. My hands reached out to catch him but he found his footing just as I was about to touch him. He gingerly touched his cheek which was turning red with each second. The Witch grabbed his jaw tightly in her bony hand and pulled him close to her face as a menacing scowl covering her face. Edmund grunted in pain as his eyes began to water.

"Think about whose side you're on Edmund. Mine…" she roughly turned his head to face the stone Mr Fox. "Or theirs." She let him go and Edmund hung his head in shame, screwing his eyes shut to stop the tears from falling, his hands holding on to the little stone bird tightly. The Witch turned to her wolves.

"Gather the faithful. If it's a war Aslan wants, it's a war he shall get." The Witch spoke with a sneer. She turned away and began to walk away from the cliff with her wolves following close behind her, leaving me and Edmund alone. I eyed Maugrim as he padded past us. After we had survived the river I had hoped he had drowned with the other wolves but apparently I was sorely mistaken. As soon as the wolves were out of sight, I turned back to Edmund only to find him kneeling in front of Mr Fox touching his paw gingerly. No matter how horrified I was at Edmund's betrayal I couldn't find it in myself to be angry at him. Just watching him miserably kneeling in front of Mr Fox brought a tear to my eye.

"I'm sorry. Really I am I'm so sorry." He whispered to the frozen form of Mr Fox. "I'll make it up to you. I'll make it all right, I promise. I didn't mean to do this…" I felt a tear fall down my cheek. There wasn't anything I could do. I wished that Ed was safe with us, not here hurt and miserable. The scene around me began to fade away at the sides. It was fizzling away like it was being burnt.

I woke with a gasp to find myself lying in the camp bed. I could hear the faint snores and breathing in from all around the camp. Susan and Lucy were fast asleep in the hammocks and they were gently swinging back and forth. I sighed and sat up, placing my forehead in my hands and just wishing I could fall back asleep. I hadn't slept properly for days not since the day before we were evacuated. I was exhausted. I wished these dreams would go away and leave me alone for just one night. I quietly got up and tiptoed over to the chest of dresses.

When I had gotten back from talking to Aslan I had changed out of my clothes and into a dress. I had never worn a dress before as my father wasn't too keen on shopping with his daughter. I had always thought it was because it reminded him of my mother but there were other things that came into it too. My dad always used to talk to me about if my mother was still here he would've liked me to have a brother. I wouldn't have minded having a little brother but ever since then, dad would look at me like he was missing something, like he wished I was a boy instead of a girl.

I opened the chest and pulled out a deep blue velvet dress. It was simple, not too elegant or over the top but it was light and practical. I slipped it on over my head without fastening it behind my back and quietly headed out of the tent. There was a cool breeze in the air as I walked aimlessly around the camp until I suddenly reached the top of a hill that overlooked a valley. There was red sky on the horizon with light pinks and oranges as it grew further away. My grandmother used to tell me this little rhyme. _Red sky in the morning, sailor's warning,_ she used to say. It was supposed to be for all those lost at sea or something but my grandmother usually said it to warn me of something bad happening soon. But how could a sunrise be bad? It was one of the most beautiful things in the world.

The view in front of me was incredible. The valley stretched all the way to the horizon where I think there was the coast. Long strips of white sand meeting the sunrise stained water like two paths that can touch but never swap over. It was so quiet that I thought I could hear the gentle waves moving in and out against the shore. I reached up and clasped on to my locket feeling it sit comfortably in the palm of my hand.

"Alexandra, to what do I owe the pleasure of you being out of bed?" a voice spoke behind me making me jump. I spun around to face a huge furry cat face and whiskers. Aslan lay down beside me with his paws outstretched in front of him.

"I couldn't sleep." I replied my eyes returning to the horizon just as the first few rays began to stretch up and show themselves.

"Why ever not?" he asked turning his head to watch me in the corner of his eye. I shrugged my shoulders.

"I guess I'm just worried about Edmund." I replied. Okay, so I wasn't ready to tell Aslan about my dreams just yet. I've only just met him even if he did say he knew me and I knew him.

"I will do everything I can to help Edmund. You've got to have faith in me," He said gently. I scoffed quietly and tilted my head to him.

"No offense Aslan, but I didn't even know you before I came here. I didn't even know worlds like this existed until a few days ago." I sighed. So many things had happened since we found the wardrobe. We found a magical land where Beavers could talk and trees could spy on you, Edmund had gone missing and we've been chased practically everywhere by wolves only to get to a camp which is ruled by a big talking lion and has loads of mythical creatures who keep looking at me like I've done something wrong.

The lion laughed with a smile on his face. I was confused. I would've thought that Aslan would be mad, but here he is laughing. "Now, I know why I created you the way you are."

"Sorry?" I asked with a frown.

"You're not afraid to say what you think even if you might unintentionally upset someone." He chuckled.

"Isn't that a bad thing?"

"It depends on the situation Alexandra. You'll have to think about when to speak your mind and when to bite your tongue in the future." He smiled. I smirked a little bit before I caught on to what he was saying.

"Wait, do you think we'll win the war then?" I asked as Aslan looked at me as his whiskers rose up. Maybe if Aslan thought we could win then maybe we'd have nothing to worry about.

"There is no telling what will happen in the future. All we can do is hope and prepare." He said sincerely. "Now, a friend of mine sent me a message that you have something to ask of me." He nodded his head to my hand which was still holding on to my locket. I gasped at the realisation and unclasped my necklace from around my neck.

"Oh I completely forgot," I breathed out, holding my locket in my hand. For some reason it felt slightly heavier than usual. "Father Christmas gave me this little bottle of oil to open my locket with but he also said to ask you for help." My hands began to fondle the cold metal locket in my hands, itching to open it and see the picture of my father.

"Of course I'll help you." He said watching me as I shakily opened the little bottle of oil and poured it over the hinge until it was covered. After rubbing the oil in to the hinge, I began to pry the locket open. It still wouldn't budge.

"Oh come on," I grumbled at it but it still wouldn't open. I sighed and looked up to Aslan. "Could you help me?" Aslan lifted up his paw and revealed a very long, very sharp claw. I stiffened slightly at the sight before Aslan placed his claw in to the groove of the locket and twitched it.

The locket sprang open and I frowned.

"What the…?" I stared in confusion inside the locket. There wasn't a picture at all. Instead in its place was another necklace. The pendant was a golden horn shape with fruits and flowers in it. I remembered from my Greek Myths book that it was a cornucopia. There was something about it being a symbol of something but I couldn't remember what. But where was the picture of my father? He said he put it in there himself. "Aslan, what is this? There was supposed to be a picture of my father inside it. Where is it?"

Aslan sighed and shook his head in disdain. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. "I was hoping it wouldn't be you."

"What are you talking about? Tell me." I demanded, my hands shaking slightly. Aslan stared at me with sad eyes.

"I've seen this pendant before. It was your mother's." he said quietly, looking down at the necklace.

"I don't understand. My Dad gave this to me, not my mother. She abandoned us." I said shaking my head. I paused and stared at him in shock. "How do you know her anyway?"

"Your mother wanted to live a human's life so she came to me and begged me to send her to England to live the life of a Daughter of Eve. I only gave her twenty years as England was not where she belonged. Whilst she was there, she fell in love with your father and fell pregnant with you." Aslan looked up at me as I tried to make sense of what he was saying. "When it was time for her to come back, Jadis was rallying her troops and taking over Narnia. She had to come back and fight her. She had to get Queen Swanwhite to safety, who was the last remaining heir of King Frank and Queen Helen, but she failed. Queen Swanwhite was murdered and the Narnians were already in hiding from Jadis. Your mother came to me for help but it was too late. Narnia had fallen and it was time to wait. I told your mother to wait for me at the gates of my country."

"How did I get her necklace? I don't understand." I mumbled. "Actually, I don't think I want to understand."

"I know this is hard to comprehend but it is the truth. It is why you are here."

"What? So I am supposed to be here." I asked looking up at him with wide eyes. He nodded.

"There is a prophecy that involves you, but your time is yet to come. For now, you are here to support the Pevensies so that they can fulfil their prophecy." Aslan said turning to the horizon just as the sun was rising in to the sky. It was beautiful to watch. Romantic to say the least but I wasn't really in the mood. As soon it was over Aslan turned his head to me with a smile. "It is time for a few more hours of sleep Alexandra. We have a long day today."

I didn't really want to go back to sleep but I had no choice. I stood up with Aslan and we began to walk back to our tents. It felt slightly warmer than earlier but I didn't care. I wanted to see the picture of my father. There must be some mistake. My Dad never lied to me and he had sworn that he put the picture in himself. When we reached the entrance of my tent Aslan turned to me one last time.

"It would be best that if you do decide to wear your mother's necklace, not to wear it on show." He whispered to me.

"Why?" I whispered back glancing inside my tent to make sure I didn't wake up Susan or Lucy.

"There are some who are still grieving for the past." He said grimly. I began to think back to when Oreius and many other Narnians kept looking at me suspiciously. Could that be the reason as to why they were looking at me like that? That still didn't make sense. I nodded to Aslan and headed in to my tent, changing out of my dress and in to my nightgown before getting in to the camp bed. Father Christmas had said that some of my questions would be answered if I went to Aslan for help, but all I've gotten was even more questions. Why couldn't anyone just tell me the answers and stop giving me riddles to solve? It was getting on my nerves. But I suppose I now at least know I'm supposed to be here.

I rolled on to my side and stared at the cornucopia pendant in my hand. It was beautiful, don't get me wrong it's just I wished now I had something from my father instead of something from my mother whom I've never met in my life. With a sigh, I closed my eyes and cleared my mind, falling asleep just moments later.

I didn't have a dream at all.


	15. Susan and Lucy meet a nice doggy

**Hello I am back for now!**

**Right here's the story of why I have not been updating for so long, I'll try to keep it short because no one wants to hear me prattle on about myself. My laptop had gotten infected with a whole truck load of viruses because of windows (thank you very much, very appreciated.) and completely messed up my computer and my documents. Here's the bad thing, I can't get the chapters for any of my stories and for The Affairs of the Heart and it's sequel I had planned in advance with little scenes already written and now I have to write from scratch. It sucks. And to top it all off, the computer I'm on now has no Microsoft word and it isn't compatible with it either. I'm now resigned to the school computers for the time being. So in short, expect updates to be late. **

**On a more positive note… thank you all for the reviews however I have one little thing to say. If you think that my character Alex is in any way going towards the Mary Sue territory, feel free to tell me why you think that is and also suggest how I can change my character and improve them to make them better. Help me out a bit so that you can enjoy the story as well instead of just saying it's a Mary Sue. That does not in any way help me at all. I have also based Alex on some of the aspects of my best friend so please tell me if there is anything that I can improve. I have decided not to delete the Mary Sue review because everyone is entitled to their opinion so don't have a go at whoever it is. At least they have the guts to criticise me and I appreciate that a lot. **

**The italics bit is either thoughts or a memory. Enjoy and review please! I need cheering up. **

* * *

**The Affairs of the heart **

**Susan and Lucy meet a nice doggy and I make a stand. **

"Milady, it is time to get up." a voice called to me as I slept. "Milady, it is nearing mid-morning and you haven't had your breakfast. It is time to wake up." I groggily opened my eyes to see Ivy standing over me and shaking me awake. Everything behind her was brighter, I could here the bustling life of the camp outside the tent around me and here was Ivy, hair neatly tied back and a huge cheery smile painted across her greenish face. I gave her a small sleepy smile and then yawned as I sat up in my camp bed.

"Morning," I mumbled through another yawn as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. "Is it really mid-morning?"

"Of course, their majesties were already up early this morning." Ivy replied as she began to bustle about the tent picking up the deep blue dress I had put on early this morning when I spoke to Aslan after my dream.

"Wow, I haven't slept this long in ages." I said absent-mindedly. I pulled back the blankets and got out of bed. Almost all of my limbs were stiff from sleeping so long and I could also hear the distinctive sounds of my bones cracking slightly. Ivy turned to me looking slightly concerned.

"Hmm, that doesn't sound too good," There was a frown on her face. I smiled and shook my head.

"Oh no, this is all fine for us. It's just that I've been asleep for a while." I reassured her shaking out my limbs to prove it. "See?"

Ivy looked like she wasn't sure. "You humans are very strange creatures I must say." She held up my deep blue dress for me to put on.

"How are we strange?"

"Well to start off with you sleep in a bed!" she chuckled with an incredulous shake of her head. I laughed as I slipped the dress on, turning around so that Ivy could fasten the ties on my back. "Two, you eat meat and hot food and drink."

"We eat salads as well. Some of us are even vegetarians." I stared at myself in the mirror as Ivy tied the dress tightly. My hair looked like a bird's nest minus the leaves and sticks. I was definitely going to have to have a wash later.

"It is still very strange milady." Ivy shook her head with a small smile. With a final tug of my dress, she stepped back and observed her handiwork. "Right, that is all milady, lunch will be served at midday so you are free to do whatever you want."

"Thank you Ivy." I said, picking up and tying my Sais around my waist before heading out of the tent. Just like yesterday, there were many Narnians bustling about either making weapons or tending to wounds of soldiers coming worse off in the practice spares. I walked aimlessly about watching as everyone went about their business. There were even some fauns making lunch above a huge fireplace, in a blackened cooking pot. I strolled over and took in a deep breath, stirring a huge wooden spoon that was hanging idly from the handle. I think it was tomato soup, but it was like nothing I had ever smelled before. It made my mouth water.

"What are you doing?" a brisk voice sounded beside me. I jumped and dropped the spoon in to the soup with a_ sploosh!_ Standing in front of me with a suspicious frown on her face was a middle-aged faun. Her hair was tied in to a bun at the back of her head and she was wearing a grubby white apron. She cleaned her hands in the apron before letting it fall in front of her furry goat legs.

"Oh sorry," I mumbled feeling quite embarrassed with myself as the faun tried to fish in the soup for the wooden spoon I had dropped. "I was just wondering if I could help with anything."

"No, that'll be fine." She said curtly before turning her back on me. I blinked and, feeling a little downhearted, turned and walked away. I walked casually through the campsite stopping once every few steps to offer my help around the campsite. The Narnians turned me down every time. I was starting to think they wanted nothing to do with me. With a sigh I headed to the little spot where I had talked with Aslan in the early sunrise and sat down.

The sun was shining brightly in the sky as a light summery breeze blew through the air, nudging the trees in the woods and tickling the grass. There were young fauns and cubs playing in the valley below the cliff where I sat. They were laughing and screaming as they played a game that seemed to be Tag. I wished I was playing with them. The last time I played tag was with the Pevensies and some of the Cameron's kids in the park before the war. Little Victor Cameron was on and we were all trying not to be caught. He was a short, squat little kid of thirteen with round rosy cheeks, floppy limp blonde hair and little brown piggy eyes. It was safe to say that the game went on for hours as no one was caught.

When the Cameron's had to go home for tea, Edmund thought it would be a great idea to explore the wooded area of the park that no one was allowed to go down. I went with him whilst the others stayed in the playground with Lucy.

"_Come on Alex, just a little further. It's just like an adventure." Edmund beamed as he grabbed my arm and dragged me along behind him. My foot sunk deep in to the mud. With a grimace I pulled my foot out and shook the mud off of it. _

"_Edmund, where are we going? We're not going to play Cowboys and Indians again are we? I hate being the Indian." I groaned as he ducked under a branch and tugged me under as well. He frowned at me before a huge grin took over his face. _

"_Of course not," he said flippantly, "We'll play…Sailors and Pirates!" I frowned at him._

"_That's exactly the same as Cowboys and Indians!" I whined at him. He was always doing this and I would always be tied to a tree ready to be burned. He let out a petulant sigh and rounded on me._

"_I'll let you be the Cowboy! Well, Cowgirl." _

"_Why can't we just play something more fun?" I groaned. We had stopped by the bank of a small stream and Edmund grabbed my hand ready to jump over. _

"_It is fun!" he retorted as we jumped over a stream. Stumbling slightly, I stepped forward and headed up the slope after Edmund. His hand had let go of my own but had grabbed my sleeve. _

"_For you maybe, you never get tied up!" I huffed and tugged my arm out of his hand, crossing my arms with a pout. We had stopped by a huge tree that seemed to touch the sky, with huge roots and branches. With a frustrated growl Edmund kicked the side of a root. With a yelp he started hopping on one foot whilst rubbing his sore one. "Are you alright, Ed?" My mouth twitched into a smile. He looked really funny.  
_

"_Yes, I'm fine." He grumbled gingerly stepping on his foot. He winced slightly but kept his foot down. _

"_You two there! What are you doing?" a voice shouted angrily. We jumped suddenly as a man in uniform started marching towards us. _

"_Uh oh, run!" Edmund shouted grabbing my hand as we ran as fast as we could._

"_Hey!" the man called behind us as we ran and ran. He started to chase after us. _

"_Edmund, he's catching up!" I panicked. We whizzed past the trees and leapt over tree trunks, our breathing turning ragged and painful with each gasp. The trees around us were slowly beginning to thin. _

"_The wall is just right up ahead, come on!" he hissed. I took a glance behind us at the guard and smiled. He was a few yards away puffing and wheezing, bent double with his hands on his knees. We were going to make it. We reached the wall and Edmund scrambled up and over. "Come on Alex!" I placed my foot against the wall and scrambled up the wall, my feet slipping every so often. I reached the top with one leg over the other side when I suddenly felt a hand roughly grab my ankle. _

"_Come here girly!" the man growled and pulled me back over the other side as Edmund scrambled up after me. I landed on the floor in front of the officer before I was roughly pulled up. _

_Smack! _

_I yelled out as I felt a blow on my behind. Tears welled in my eyes as another blow came. "Hey, leave her alone!" Edmund shouted as he grabbed me and kicked the man in the leg. Whilst the man was rubbing his leg, Edmund hurriedly helped me over the wall and scrambled up after me. We ran as far away as we could away from the woods until we were safely in the playground._

_Tears were rolling down my face as I tried to rub the pain away. Edmund turned to me and gave me a hankie with a sad look on his face. "Sorry Alex. He was a moody old sod anyway." I sniffled as my mouth twitched in to a smile. He grinned at me. "Come on, let's go home."_

I sighed and pulled out my mother's necklace, lying back on the ground and raising the necklace in the air above me. It spun in the breezy air and it twinkled in the sunlight. There were little tiny jewels at the open end of the cornucopia which looked like little fruit. The pendant really was beautiful. But I surely can't wear this, could I? It was my mother's and she left me and my Dad on our own to come back here. She abandoned us. Were we not enough for her? I didn't even know who she was and Dad never talked about her.

Who was she to the Narnians? Was she a leader? Was she some sort of General? All of these questions kept whirling around my head about who she might've been but no answers were coming. The pendant continued to twinkle like a star as it spun around in the air. How did it even get in the locket that my Dad gave to me as a going away present? That must have been what was jamming it, stopping it from opening.

I frowned, sat up and threw the necklace away from me in frustration. Why should I even be thinking these questions in the first place? She never cared about us. She abandoned me when I was a baby! What kind of mother would do that? _Now that's not fair Alexandra, _my grandmother's voice chided. _You didn't even know her. She could have had her reasons. _I could just imagine her wiggling one of her round fingers at me.

But she might not have, like you said I didn't know her, I thought back stubbornly crossing my arms across my chest. The necklace glinted from the ground out of the corner of my eye. I tried to ignore it. The necklace was fit for royalty, how could I possibly wear it? It continued to glint in the sunlight. I sighed and picked it up. The pendant was cool against my fingers and I could imagine it lying against my collarbone.

If my mother had left this for me then what did it mean? Did she regret leaving us? Did she want a relationship with me? So many questions ran through my head. Did I want to know my mother? A small part of me said yes, and it was getting louder and louder as I thought more about it. What if she was still here? Aslan had said she was waiting at the gates of his Kingdom so maybe I can go find her. I could ask why she left us. I could get to know her. I could maybe get her to come back to our world and stay with me and Dad, and then I could maybe have a little brother or sister like my Dad had wanted for me. Or maybe we could have a family like the Pevensies. I took off my locket from around my neck and clasped the pendant in its place. A little glimmer of hope bubbled up inside of me.

A conch horn sounded in the air signalling that it was time for lunch. I stood and started to head back to the tents. I didn't even realise what time it was or how long I had spent on my own thinking. My stomach growled as the smell of tomato soup wafted past my nose.

"Alex, you're up! Finally, we thought you had died in your sleep this morning you wouldn't move." Susan teased as she and Lucy jogged over to me from what looked like a fighting arena. I think I'll have to have a look around this camp soon or I might get lost. Susan was wearing a very pretty green velvet dress with her bow and arrows tied around her back. Her hair was tied back in to a pleasant half-up, half-down style. Lucy was similar to Susan with her hair tied back the same way however her dress was a light grey silk dress and she had a lily in her hair. She would've looked like a dryad if her skin wasn't flushing pink.

"I decided to get up and watch the sunrise this morning." I said as we settled down around a small table with bowls and spoons sitting in the middle, Susan to my left and Lucy to my right. Lucy smiled as she handed the bowls around. Casting a quick look around, I asked, "Where's Peter? Is he not eating with us?"

"He'll be here in a minute. He's just talking to Oreius." Susan replied. I shuddered. How can anyone talk to Oreius without feeling intimidated? I don't think I could do that.

"What's for lunch?" Lucy asked curiously sniffing the air as the middle-aged faun from earlier tottered over with the cooking pot.

"Tomato and Basil soup, your Highness," the faun replied with a smile as she asked for bowls to be filled. Lucy handed her bowl to her and the faun filled it with a ladle full of soup. Susan grabbed my bowl and followed Lucy's example. "Careful, your Highness, it is quite hot."

Lucy was already tucking in to her food as soon as our bowls were giving back. "Hmm, this is lovely."

"Why can I taste splinters?" Susan mused as she frowned at her spoon. I stiffened slightly as the middle-aged faun narrowed her eyes at me.

"Susan, stop your fussing and eat your lunch." A voice said snappily from behind us. I jumped in surprise as Peter picked up a bowl and sat down next to Lucy with a tired sigh.

"Are you alright Pete?" I asked with a frown. Peter looked up at me and strained a smile.

"I'm fine, just a bit sore. Oreius has been teaching me how to fight with a sword." He answered with a wince as he reached for his bowl from the faun. "He sure knows how to let you know if you're slacking. I'm going to have bruises on top of bruises tomorrow."

"Poor you," the faun remarked sympathetically. "So who else will be eating with you? You've given me five bowls." Everyone blinked in surprise as we looked on the table to indeed see five bowls filled with steaming red soup.

"Oh…" Susan whispered. "We forgot Edmund wasn't here…"

Everyone fell silent just staring at the bowl in the middle of the table. Suddenly I had lost my appetite and put my spoon down. The wind seemed to blow slightly colder around us as the realisation kicked in. What was happening to him right now? Was he having something to eat? Sensing the carefree atmosphere had gone the faun picked up the bowl and took it away mumbling something about giving it to Mrs Tootles, an elderly barn owl who lived in the woods by the Stone Table. For the rest of the meal everyone ate in silence thinking about their own days and not sharing it. I didn't like it. It felt like we were strangers again, like when we were on the train being evacuated to Professor Kirke's house. I tried to think of something to say.

"Shall we go down to the stream? I could do with a wash today." I said positively, looking at everyone. Susan nodded as she put her spoon in her bowl and stood up.

"Yes, let's go. Lu, Pete do you want to come?" she asked brushing off the grass from her dress. Lucy stood up but Peter shook his head.

"No thank you, I just want to think on my own for a while." He mumbled, standing up and walking away without a glance back. I was worried about him. I hadn't seen him much since we had gotten to camp and it was like he was avoiding us. I shook my head and pushed it to the back of my mind, following Susan and Lucy down to the stream.

The stream was set on the outskirts of the camp within the first layer of trees. There was a table and a trunk full of clothes for people to wash and bathe. Lucy walked over to the trunk and started to rifle through the dresses whilst I knelt down by the water and cleaned my face.

"Mum used to have loads of dresses like these before the war." Lucy said wistfully as she picked up a summer yellow one before putting it back in the trunk. "Do you remember when we dressed up in them on your birthday Sue?"

"Oh yes, maybe we should bring some back for her." Susan smiled taking off her shoes and stepping in to the stream. The cool water made her jump slightly before she walked further in.

"A whole trunk full!" Lucy agreed.

"It will be a great present for her birthday," I nodded wiping my face and walking over to the table to grab a towel. "I accidentally knocked her present on the floor and it smashed."

"What was it?" Susan asked, paddling around in the water whilst holding the skirt of her dress in her hand. The edges of the dress were staining a darker shade of green than the rest of her dress.

"We got her a statue of a marionette clown." I said with a smile. Susan shuddered and looked at me with a grimace.

"Oh it's a good thing then, Mum's terrified of clowns. I'm scared of them too." She shivered before returning to whatever she was doing. I frowned and thought to myself. What if I had given her the statue? I couldn't even begin to think of what she'd do.

"Oh! What if the war's not over by her birthday? Are we going to miss it?" Lucy exclaimed, horrified at the prospect of missing her mother's birthday.

"How would we even get back from here? We could be stuck here for the rest of our lives." Susan thought aloud. Lucy gasped, ran over to the water and splashed Susan. Susan shrieked and started spluttering. I giggled at her face. It was probably the most shocked I had ever seen Susan before. It really was a sight to see. Susan narrowed her eyes playfully and splashed some water towards me. The cool droplets of water dripped down the back of my neck as Susan and Lucy engaged in a huge water fight, splashing each other and shrieking, Lucy stumbling in to the water and soaking her bum. I laughed at them until they eventually trudged out of the water, their hair plastered to their foreheads. "That was the most fun I've had in ages!"

"Yeah, maybe you should do it more often that way you won't get so boring!" Lucy grinned cheekily. Susan threw a half-hearted glare, reaching up to pull a towel off of a branch. She pulled it down and screamed, jumping back and shielding Lucy behind her. I froze. Maugrim was stood hunched over with a haggard look on his snarling face. Two other wolves were stood behind him snarling and baring their teeth menacingly at us.

"Please don't run, we're tired and we prefer to kill you quickly." Maugrim groaned as he stepped forward. A split second later Susan threw the towel on the wolf's face, pushed Lucy up on to a low branch in the tree and grabbed her horn. It blew a conch horn sound, loud enough for someone back at the camp to hear that we were in trouble. My hands grabbed my Sais and I turned to run when I felt sharp teeth enclosed around my right ankle. I screamed in pain as Susan climbed in to the tree with Lucy. She was starting to panic as she slipped and one of the wolves snapped at her foot.

Tears were slipping down my face as I continued to scream. Tightening my grip on my Sais I desperately stabbed at the wolf, which let go of my ankle with a yelp. All I had done was stab him in the side of one of his legs making him limp about and whimper. I took a glance at my ankle and paled at the bloody mangled mess of it. I heard a tremendous galloping sound and splashes in the water.

"Susan, Alex! Get back!" Peter shouted, sword thrust valiantly in the air and a brave expression adorned on his face. Maugrim turned his attention to Peter and let out a throaty laugh. If he was a human I could imagine him as a fat man with a cigar in his mouth and a cloud of smoke above his head.

"Oh come on little king, we've gone through this before. You can't beat me on your own!" Maugrim taunted as his laughs had gotten louder. Suddenly a roar echoed in the air as Oreius galloped in to view ready to fight. Aslan was beside him with a paw holding down the whimpering wolf that had bitten my ankle. Aslan ordered Oreius to hold back with a turn of his head, claiming that it was Peter's battle. I was too scared to move.

Peter pointed the sword at Maugrim holding it with both hands. He was shaking slightly. Maugrim grinned. "So little king, you've got an overgrown pussycat as your backup, so what?" they began to circle each other in a wide arc. I could hear Oreius whispering instructions to Peter as he passed and I watched as Pete fixed his stance and gripped his sword more firmly. Maugrim growled and stepped back in to a fighting stance, ready to leap at Peter as soon as his back was turned. "You may look and act like a king, but you're going to die…like a dog!"

I screamed as Maugrim leapt at Peter landing on top of him, knocking him to the ground. The other wolf ran away from Susan's foot, but he didn't make it far as a red fletched arrow stuck into his side and he fell to the ground still. I looked up to see Susan resting her bow on her lap, glaring at the wolf that had taunted them. They hurriedly jumped down and I dragged myself over to Peter, pushing the wolf off of him and praying that Pete was alright. With a shell-shocked expression on his face, Peter sat up and stared at all of us.

"Did you see that!" he exclaimed as grins plastered our faces. "I-I can't believe I d-did that!" We pulled him in to a hug and I ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Don't you ever scare us like that again, do you understand?" Susan sighed in relief. Aslan lifted his paw and the Wolf scampered away, stumbling with a yelp every so often because of the wound I inflicted on him.

"Follow him. He will lead you to Edmund." Aslan ordered to Oreius and he, along with a few who had come along, stormed away after the cowardly wolf. Aslan turned to Peter. "Peter, clean your sword and kneel before me."

After a moments hesitation Peter stood up and took his sword out of Maugrim's lifeless body and headed to the water. I stared at the body blankly, just trying to comprehend what had happened. Maugrim was dead. He wasn't going to terrorise us anymore. _Good riddance,_ I thought. My ankle burned as more blood oozed out of my wound.

"Lucy? Do you have a bandage or something? My ankle's bleeding." I said wincing as I shifted around, trying to find a more comfy way to sit. Lucy turned to me and gasped at the sight of my ankle. She took out her fire flower bottle and gave me a drop. I watched my ankle as it healed up. The wounds from where the wolf's teeth had bitten me were quite quickly sealing up until the skin was completely smooth. Standing up I tested my ankle, putting weight on it and moving it about. It was all better. I turned to Lucy and smiled. "Lucy, that stuff is amazing."

"I know." She grinned. Peter walked back and knelt before Aslan like he was told to, bowing his head slightly. I smiled. I was so relieved that Pete was alright. Susan, Lucy and I fell quiet and watched on as Aslan placed his paw on Peter's shoulder.

"Rise, Sir Peter Wolfsbane, Knight of Narnia." Aslan announced with a whiskery smile and Peter stood up. Everyone cheered and we all ran over to him and gave him a hug.

"Congratulations Pete!" I grinned giving him a hug around his waist. He hugged me back and then let me go to hug Lucy, who was bouncing up and down excitedly squealing "My big brother's a Knight! My big brother's a Knight!" in a sing song voice.

A centaur trotted up to us and clapped Peter on his shoulder. "Well done Knight, looks like Oreius' training has paid off. Although, you still need a lot of work, if I may say." Peter nodded vigorously in agreement. The centaur began to lead us off back to camp, talking animatedly to Peter about stances and weapons.

I stared at my Sais which I had only realised I was holding tightly on to. I loosened my grip cringing at the feeling of the muscles in my fingers stretched out from being so tense. I hadn't been able to protect myself from the wolf that had attacked me. I should've been able to use the Sais more. I suddenly had an idea.

We had reached the tents of the camp when I had caught up to the centaur. "Excuse me?" I called after the large centaur. He had the body of a chestnut brown horse with a gorgeous groomed tail and strong powerful legs. He was a soldier. Definitely. The centaur cast a glance at me and raised his eyebrow.

"What is it Milady?" the centaur replied politely, still walking on. I had to jog to keep up.

"Um, I was wondering, could you -?"

"Could I possibly teach you how to fight?" he guessed without me even finishing my question. I felt a little taken aback. I nodded and the centaur shook his head. My shoulders sagged. "Sorry milady, ladies shouldn't fight in a war."

"But I just want to be able to protect myself." I persisted showing him my Sais. "Could you teach me how to use these so that I can protect myself?"

He looked at the Sais and I offered one of them for him to look at. He took it and began to examine it closely. "Hmm, lightweight…sharp…good balance, this one is still covered in blood so you'll have to clean it before the blood crusts on the blade and ruins it." I nodded, understanding what he was telling me to do. He gave it back to me and shook his head. "I'm still not going to teach you how to fight just so you can fight in the war. Why don't you talk to one of the dryads, Poppy or Ivy and become a medic? We're definitely going to need more physicians." I blinked in surprise. I didn't know Ivy was a medic.

"Alright I will, but I still need to learn how to defend myself. What if I was attacked whilst I was tending to someone?" I reasoned following him to the arena. "Not only would I die but so would the soldier."

He looked up and down at me with a sceptical look on his face. "Ok, I'll give you a deal. If you are not here in the arena by sunrise tomorrow to learn how to fight then I will deduce that you aren't committed to learn." I grimaced at the thought of having to get early again but I bit my tongue and thrust my hand out to him to shake on it.

"Deal." He stared at my hand in amusement.

"What are you doing?" he asked curiously.

Feeling my cheeks heating up I put my hand down. "Never mind. What is your name by the way?"

"My name is Falstaff and I shall see you tomorrow, milady. If you can get up by sunrise that is." He chuckled slightly and trotted away leaving me standing nervously on my own.


	16. Edmund's Back to Normal

**_Hello, _**

**_I know I said earlier that updates are probably going to be late. Well they still might be but I had nothing to do all weekend and I just had to write this chapter. My fingers were just itching all week. I had found a way to write this without using word! Just basiccally use the editorial bit before you publish it. I'm such a clever bean. _**

**_ Thank you to all who have reviewed the last chapter and welcome to the story Xion's Person and MyNameIsProngs. I hope you continue to read my story. _**

**_ This is probably one of my favourite chapters so far and a very important one regarding Alex. If you look at it closely you might be able to figure out why she's been acting loopy lately. Please review and let me know what you think. I hope you like it._**

**_Now without further ado...Enjoy!_**

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart **

**Edmund's back to normal**

With a shuddering yawn, I trudged my way up to the arena in the middle of the camp with my Sais strapped around my waist. I had barely managed to get up this morning when the first few rays started to colour the sky. I was so tempted to fall back asleep when I heard Susan and Lucy peacefully breathing but then I thought of what Falstaff had said yesterday. I had to prove him wrong. What would everyone think of me if I just didn't turn up when I was expected, even if it was _stupid o'clock _in the morning.

Falstaff was stood with his lean arms across his bare chest, waiting patiently for me to arrive. I blushed and looked away in embarrassment. It wasn't common to see a man half-naked in public back in England, even if he is a Centaur. He didn't look tired at all which made me think how long he had been there waiting for me. He had long dark brown hair which was tied back behind his horse ears. He looked quite young compared to Oreius, who I thought looked like he was in his forties. Falstaff however looked much younger, in his early twenties perhaps. All around him in the training arena there was weapons of all sorts; shields, swords, daggers, spears, maces and it was accompanied with pieces of leather armour.

"Good morning milady," he greeted with a bow of his head. "Did you sleep well?" I grimaced in reply to which he chuckled. "Well, you're determined I'll give you that. Now we'll just have to use that determination and use it against your opponent." I blinked and looked up at him.

"So you'll teach me then?" I smiled.

"Yes, you seem like a good student, even if you are a girl." Falstaff replied nonchalantly walking over to a stand and picked up a wooden sword and two wooden daggers. I bit my tongue from commenting how sexist he was being. _At least he's teaching you, get in his good books then maybe his attitude will improve,_ my grandmother's voice advised. "Now, we'll just have to wait for your opponent to arrive and then we'll get started." He picked up a leather corset and examined it before putting it over his arm and then picking up some arm guards.

I blinked in surprise. "What, I'm not fighting against you?" Falstaff cast me an incredulous look.

"By the Mane no, I'd most likely kill you. When you're more experienced then you and your opponent will fight against me." Falstaff explained walking over to me and began to tie the armour on to me. I felt a bit uneasy when he wrapped the body amour around me but I kept still. I could hear a pair of tired footsteps plodding along until they suddenly stopped.

"Alex? What on earth are you doing here?" Peter exclaimed stomping towards me when I turned around. He looked quite unhappy that I was here. I frowned.

"Pete? I thought you were being taught by Oreius." I asked. Peter opened his mouth to reply when Falstaff suddenly thrust the wooden sword he had picked up earlier at Peter.

"He is," Falstaff said curtly in a no-nonsense tone. "But since Oreius is away doing something for Aslan I'm taking over his lessons for him. Now your Highness, suit up and warm up. This young lady shall be your opponent today." He clapped a hand on my shoulder and I winced at the force of it. Peter and I stared at each other in shock Before Peter shook his head.

"No, sorry I can't fight Alex." Peter said. Falstaff crossed his arms and let out a snort.

"Why ever not? Is it just because she is a female? The White Witch is a woman and yet we're going to fight against her in the war. You have to let your honour slide for today."

"It's not that -"

"I can't fight Peter! He's had training before and I haven't had any at all." I exclaimed, panicking at the thought of fighting against Pete. Falstaff snorted and flicked is tail irritably.

"Do you want to learn how to defend yourselves or not?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at us both. I reluctantly nodded my head and I could see out of the corner of my eye that Peter was nodding too. We did want to learn how to fight or else we'd be slaughtered in the battle. "Right then, stop complaining and warm up." Falstaff walked away towards the middle of the arena and I looked at Peter.

"Sorry, if I hurt you during this." Peter apologised sadly. "Mum said I was supposed to look after you."

"I'm waiting!" Falstaff called from behind us. Peter gritted his teeth and began to put his armour on.

"Don't worry about it Pete." I replied as I headed over to Falstaff to begin my training.

All morning Falstaff had been making Peter and I train like we had been in the army for years. At first he had us running laps around the arena, then doing sit-ups and press-ups. I was gasping by the end of it and my arms and stomach was aching furiously. Peter was panting beside me as well although he was gasping as much as me. He even had us running around the campsite with two full buckets of water and if we spilt even one drop then we'd have to do it all over again. I managed to succeed after the fifth time around the campsite.

"Come on milady strengthen your stance…no shoulder width apart. Now your highness, strong strike!" Falstaff instructed with a shout. Peter was grinding his teeth to stop himself from answering back as he raised his sword, which I think he had named Rhindon yesterday after he was knighted, and brought it down hard. I raised my Sais up above my head, cringing as the metal clanged loudly. "Milady, stronger blocks! If you were put in to the middle of a battle right now then you would be dead! Now block!"

Falstaff was really getting on my nerves. As Peter swung his sword down on my again I thrust my Sais up in the air and blocked the sword with a growl. The metal clanged and Peter was thrown back slightly. I gasped in shock. _Did I just do that?_ I thought as Falstaff whinnied from beside us. "Good milady," he said when suddenly I felt a blow on my chest and I was knocked harshly to the ground. Peter was stood above me with his sword pointing to my neck. "But not good enough it seems. Don't get distracted!"

A conch horn sounded in the distance and some Narnians were getting out of there tents. Everyone was getting up for breakfast. I didn't even know what the time was. Falstaff clopped over to us as Peter offered me his hand. I took it and he pulled me up. "Okay, good lesson, best if you go to the medics now and get fixed up before breakfast. Come back tomorrow for another lesson and then we'll carry on from there."

I grumbled and started to take off my armour when I felt a hand on my arm. I looked up to see Falstaff looking at me with a curious look. "You were really quite good for the last part. We should work on a way to use your frustration in combat. If you come back later on today we can work on technique."

"I thought that was what we were doing today." I said with a frown. Falstaff nodded.

"We were, but I also needed to see what you already knew." He said as I gave him my armour and then bowed. "Till then milady, remember; strengthen your stance and stronger blocks." With that he started to walk away. I sighed and headed off to the First Aid tent to get all of the cuts I had gotten from training this morning. I had cuts and bruises in places that I didn't even know I had. It was only cuts though thankfully. Upon entering the tent I saw Ivy bustling around the tent, waking all of the other dryads up from their places on the floor. At first I thought that they would be quite uncomfortable but then I remembered what she had told me last night whe I was getting ready for bed. She said that Dryads and Nymphs were nature spirits and their real home is either where their tree is planted or in a river. Never the sea, she had said, it's too salty for us to grow and live.

"Hello Ivy," I said with a small smile. She jumped and spun around, staring at me blankly before she saw my appearance. She gasped and pulled me over to a hammock, sitting me down before she bustled over to a table with lots of different coloured and shaped bottles.

"What in Aslan's name have you been doing this early in the morning?" she frowned as she picked up a clean cotton gauze and walked back over to me, shaking the bottle and then applying it to the gauze.

"I've been learning how to fight." I said. Making a loud tutting noise, she placed the gauze on to my head and then dabbed at it. I hissed. It stung a lot. Ivy shook her head in disdain.

"Who was teaching you?" she asked.

"A centaur called Falstaff." I replied only to wince as Ivy dabbed my cut a little too harshly.

"Sorry," she mumbled, taking the gauze away from my head and examined the cut on my head closely. "It's just that, Falstaff takes his job very seriously."

"Tell me about it," I muttered under my breath. Ivy walked behind me and returned with a small wooden box.

"I've known him most of my life and sometimes he can be so...pigheaded you know?" she said over her shoulder. The tent was empty now, with a blonde haired dryad exiting the tent, letting the flap fall back as she went. I listened to what Ivy was saying, even though it didn't seem like she was actually talking to me anymore. "My mother didn't like him you see. He was too...tame, even though he is a centaur. She said he lacked that knack for having fun like the nice fauns. She always did say that I should court a nice young faun. I don't see the appeal of fauns though..."

After that I cleared my throat, feeling that she was going to start talking about something she'll regret later on. Ivy jumped in surprise and glanced back at me. "Oh no, was I rambling again?"

"Kind of," I said politely as she groaned and started sticking little bits of tape over my cut.

"I don't mean to bore you, it's just nice that I have someone to talk to. All of the other Dryads can't stand it when I talk. But you? You're nice." She smiled at me, sticking on the last little piece of tape to my cut. "There, all better."

"Thanks." I replied. As I was about to head out of the tent, I paused and turned back to Ivy. "Ivy, is there anything you need help with today?" A small frown appeared on her face. "It's just, Falstaff said yesterday that I should become a medic but I don't know a thing about first aid and I was wondering if you could teach me?" I waited for her reply as she put her things away.

"Um, I'll have to talk to the Dryads and the Nymphs first but I think it should be okay." Ivy nodded with a smile. She looked around the tent and then gasped. "Actually, I don't suppose you could get me a bucket of water could you? The forest nymphs have to clean some linen and the water nymphs aren't sharing any."

I nodded with a chuckle. "Okay, I'll see you in a minute." I knew exactly where to get a bucket of cold water. I headed back to the arena, walking past Susan and Lucy who were sitting down for breakfast, swiftly taking a piece of toast and marmalade from Susan's plate as I went.

"Hey that's mine!" Susan called after me as Lucy giggled behind her.

"Sorry, I hope you don't mind. I've got to do some work for Ivy, got to go." I called back with an apologetic smile as I trudged on. Susan's jaw dropped and Lucy waved goodbye to me. I trudged on nibbling on Susan's piece of toast feeling in a chipper mood so to speak. I felt that today was going to be the day where everything changed. I felt happier now that I had found a purpose, something to make myself useful. Before I had thought that I wasn't really supposed to be here, even though Aslan had said that I belonged with the Pevensie's I didn't really believe him. I guess I just had to find out for myself.

Humming a tuneless melody, I walked into the arena and picked up one of the buckets of water that Falstaff had forced Peter and I to carry around the camp this morning. The Arena was completely empty so I didn't think anyone would've minded if I took one little bucket of water. As I walked back I began to think about the future. I wonder what my lessons would be like with Ivy. I had become close friends with Ivy within the short period of time I was here. It was a nice change from Susan and Lucy, no offense to them.

I reached the campsite without spilling a drop of water from the bucket. I suppose my practice from this morning had paid off, even though I still had no idea why carrying water around helped you to fight. It must be part of the weird plan Falstaff had devised to train us. A little faun child ran past me joyfully, almost knocking in to me, being quicly pursued by some other children from tigers and centaurs that had been allowed to play. I think a couple of them were from the game of tag I watched yesterday whilst I was sat thinking on the cliff. I smiled at the memory as I watched them continue on running past a boy with dark brown hair.

The bucket of water fell to the ground with a crash spilling the contents over my feet, but I didn't care. I stood there idly, gaping like a fool as the boy turned his curiously to the sound of the crash. _Could it be..?_ I thought with a gasp. _It is. Aslan's mane it is..._

"Alex?" Edmund asked as he walked towards me. I barely registered his family behind him staring at us as he stopped in front of me.

"Oh my..._Edmund_? You're here..." I breathed staring in shock as I took him in. He was paler than a crisp, clean sheet with cuts and bruises shining brightly on show for all to see. I instantly recognised a cut on his lower lip that seemed familiar. _It was where she hit him for lying to her,_ my grandmother's voice whispered in my mind. A shiver went up my spine so I let my eyes wander over him, taking in his shabby clothes and the way they seemed to hang off him. He gave me a tight smile.

"I'm here." he confirmed looking down at his feet. I couldn't hold it back anymore and roughly pulled him in to a hug, closing my eyes in relief. After a moments hesitation I felt him relax and his arms wrapped around my waist. It felt good to know that he was with us safe instead of with _her._

"Don't you _ever_ do that to us again Edmund." I said as I pulled away from him. "You had me - I mean _us_, worried sick. What would your mother say if she heard you ran off to a stranger in a weird world, huh?"

I watched as he sighed in relief. "I thought you were going to slap me then."

"Don't tempt me."

Edmund shook his head and pulled me in to another hug. I hugged back and silently inhaled his scent. The smell of earth and rose filled my nostrels taking me back to times before the war when we were friends. I finally had him back. I felt Edmund stiffen suddenly as he pulled away, staring at me in shock. "Your ribs...they didn't hurt you!"

"Oh, Lucy cured them with her fireflower potion." I said flippantly.

"Fireflower potion?" he frowned. I grinned at him.

"Yeah, you're going to have to be extra good this year if you want to get on Santa Claus' nice list." Edmund blinked and stared at me in shock.

"Santa Claus?"

I grinned and tugged his sleeve. "Come on, let's go get you cleaned up. You can meet Ivy! You're going to love her." I led him away towards the First Aid tent when I suddenly remembered the bucket of water Ivy needed. "Hold up, the tent's just that way. I'll be back in a minute."

Walking back to pick up the bucket I hurriedly ran to the stream and scooped up as much water as I could before heading back to the camp site. I walked past the cooking fire where I had met the head chef of the camp. The strict middle aged faun that reminded me vaguely of Mrs Macready. I had recently found out her name was Flora from Ivy and she was a very proud faun when it came to her cooking.

"So is it true then?" I heard a gruff voice call from behind me. I turned to see a three dwarfs looking curiously at me. A dark brown haired dwarf with pale green eyes was stood up pointing an unsharpened sword at me. He wasn't threatening me because of the way he was holding the sword loosely in his hand. (That was another thing I had learned from Falstaff that morning.) "That the traitor Son of Adam has come over to our side?"

I frowned. "Yes, it's true." The other two dwarfs started to mutter to themselves. The standing Dwarf smirked.

"You had better hope he doesn't betray us this time. Or else he'll be in a whole heap of trouble, and I don't just mean from the White Witch."

"What do you mean?" I asked turning to face them. The Dwarf turned to share a look at his friends.

"Aslan may be forgiving, but I don't think the Narnians will be as such. Being betrayed twice by the same person? Not a good move, is it? Especially considering all traitors belong to _her_ anyway."

"He won't betray you again," I said firmly. The Dwarf laughed.

"Aye, you better hope so lass. Otherwise we're all dead."

* * *

Word had spread around the Camp by midday of Edmund's arrival and since then there had been a lot of whispers going around about Edmund's betrayal. So it was understandable why Edmund was reluctant to be anywhere around the camp without any one of us. I had spent the day following Ivy around and helping her with any oddjobs that she needed to do. Every time I helped her with something she had insisted that I give it to her, saying that a lady such as myself should not be doing manual work.

"But I'm not a Lady and this is a campsite, not a castle. I don't see why I shouldn't be able to put in my share of the work." I insisted picking up a piece of clothing that Ivy had dropped. We were busy collecting dirty laundry for the wood Nymphs to clean. Ivy nodded her head to the towering bundle in her arms and I sighed as I flung the clothing on to the top.

"But you are not a servant either." Ivy huffed as she nodded her head towards a wicker basket on the floor. I picked it up and held it open for her as she dumped the clothes in to the basket, before taking it from me. "Just face it, unless you're a servant you can take it easy."

"Not where I'm from. We have to do jobs as well, so I'm helping you whether you like it or not." I gave her a stern look and took the basket from her. With a sigh she threw her arms in the air and then trudged on beside me. Around me I could feel the stares of the Narnians on me. I felt uneasy. "Ivy, have I done something wrong?" I took a glance around me as we walked. She frowned as she looked at me from the corner of her eye.

"No, of course not. Why ever would you think that?" she scoffed as a faun waved her over and gave her a bundle of dirty shirts. The faun smiled and froze as soon as he saw me, before clearing his throat and continuing on with his work.

"Then if I haven't done anything wrong, why does every Narnian we pass seem to glare at me?" Ivy stopped, looking down at the bundle of clothes in her arms.

"I've forgotten to get the washing board, hold on a second." she mumbled, turning around to head back the way we came. I grabbed her arm and she halted.

"Please Ivy, why does everyone do that?" I pleaded with her. She sighed and reached up, squeezing my shoulder affectionately.

"Oh you poor sapling," Ivy grumbled. "It's not any of your fault. It's just, we Narnians are very hard to convince when we've been oppressed for so long."

"I don't understand."

"It's just you have a very striking resemblance to the White Witch." Ivy whispered to me, casting a look around to check that we were alone. My jaw dropped in incredulous shock.

"But I'm nothing like her!" I protested. I _was_ nothing like her. We didn't even look alike. For one thing I had dark hair and from what I've seen from my dreams, her hair was the colour of icy snow. Not to mention she's as tall as a tree.

"I know milady, I know. But like I said, we Narnians are very hard to convince."

"What can I do to prove to you all that I'm not like her?"

Ivy looked at me thoughtfully biting her lip. "Lady Alexandra -"

"Please don't call me that," I interrupted with a wince. "I don't deserve that title."

"Alright Alexandra, have you spoken to Prince Edmund since he's been back?"

"Yes, right before I brought him to the First Aid tent."

"And since then..?" Ivy asked, raising her eyebrow thoughtfully. I stared down at my feet and shook my head. The truth was, right after I listened to what those Dwarves had told me earlier I had begun to think of whether Edmund was still as horrid as he was before we found the wardrobe. What if we didn't have him back? The _real_ Edmund? The nice, sweet youngest son of the Pevensies? Ivy nodded her head as if she had made a verdict. "Might I suggest that you start with that? He needs friends at the moment. He's been through a lot, the poor sapling."

I nodded. "Okay, thank you Ivy." I gave Ivy a quick awkward hug, giving her the basket of clothes, then headed off to find Edmund. Now, Edmund wasn't very sociable as his siblings, opting to watch on from the sidelines as they had fun. It was one of the things I liked about him when we were younger. I remember one time we were at Peter's birthday party and nearly everyone from school had been invited...

_The party was in full swing with the grammophone in the corner playing some swing music that had just come over from America. Susan was busy talking to the boys who had come along, Peter was opening his presents and thanking his friends and Lucy was dancing with her father. Well, her father was letting her stand on his feet and he was circling around the room. _

_Edmund was standing by the wall smiling and tapping his foot along with the music. I walked over to him with two cups of juice and leant against the wall beside him, giving him one of the cups as I went. "Enjoying the party?" I asked as he took a sip from his cup. He nodded and smiled back at me. _

_"Yes, are you?" he replied. I had never been invited to a party like this before. I was enjoying myself but I'd have to admit that it was a bit overwhelming. I nodded back and watched on as the song changed. Almost everyone in the room started to dance in the middle of the floor. Susan was dancing some kind of jive but her partner, a tall, gangly boy with red hair and glasses, kept stepping on her toes and apologised every time. I looked away with a cringe, feeling sorry for Susan's toes.I spotted my grandmother sitting in an armchair, her head lolling about and her glasses sliding down her nose. I smiled at the sight. She had been getting very tired lately, normally dozing off during the evenings whilst doing a crossword of whilst she was knitting. Her greying blonde hair was still lying stiff in her hairnet that she had forotten to take off when we arrived three hours ago._

_"Oh, looks like Mum's bringing out Pete's birthday cake." Edmund said setting his empty cup on the coffee table beside him. _

_"Trust you to spot when pudding's coming out of the kitchen," I giggled as Edmund rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at me. I tipped back the rest of my juice into my mouth and swallowed it._

_"So, who doesn't like cake?" Edmund scoffed as he pushed away from the wall. "Besides, it's Victoria Sponge. Your favourite, I believe?"_

_"Ooh," I pushed away from the wall and followed Ed, singing along with everyone else as they started to sing Happy Birthday to Peter..._

Back then, just like he used to play with me and his siblings, he used to be my best friend. I don't like to talk about it because the war had started and ruined everything when our fathers went away to war. It brought back a lot of sad memories. I spotted Edmund sitting on his own at the cliff where I had sat the other day. He had his head on his knees and he wasn't moving. I noticed that he was still wearing his clothes he had been wearing earlier. "Hello," I greeted nervously.

"What do you want Alex?" he grumbled into his knees. "I just want to be left alone for a while."

"Do you want a hug?" I offered raising my arms. He looked up and scoffed.

"Don't be so soppy, boys don't get hugs off girls." I smiled and shook my head, sitting down next to him and wrapping my arms around my knees. I could just see the ghost of a smirk on his lips.

"Oh, so you were in a soppy mood earlier then?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Sun stroke."

"Ah, right." I nodded feeling my lips itching to be pulled in to a smile. Everything fell silent between the both of us. I could faintly hear the gently spring breeze blowing the trees in the distance. It was too quiet and I just had to know. I just had to ask him the question we'd all been thinking. "Why did you do it? Why did you betray us to the White Witch?"

Edmund looked up at me and sighed with a shrug of his shoulders. "I don't know."

I shook my head. "I don't believe you. You're not reckless Ed. You don't do anything without a reason."

"I was angry, okay?" Edmund sighed as if he had finally gotten something off his chest. "I was angry that everyone was always looking for the worst in me."

"I didn't look for the worst in you."

"Maybe not, but I was still angry at you. I still am a bit." He looked at me square in the face. I frowned in confusion.

"Why? I already apologised for pushing you in the snow and being horrid to you -"

"Not about that. I'm angry at you because you keep lying to us." I stared at him in shock. Did the White Witch put some kind of spell on him that's left his mind frazzled?

"I'm not lying to you."

"Yes you are," Edmund insisted. He was completely facing me with a frustrated frown on his face. "You're doing it to me right now."

"What am I _supposedly_ lying to you about then Edmund?" I replied feeling my own frustration growing inside me, ready to explode.

"You, your well-being, everything you're going through. Even why you still have nightmares." My frustration had now, well and truly, snapped in to a raging anger.

"I am fine!" I snapped at him, my eyes narrowing into a glare, to which he annoyingly matched.

"No you're not. If you were "fine" you would be in a hospital or in an asylum." His fingers made little quotation marks when he said the word "fine". Was he calling me mad?

"What are you talking about?" I seethed, standing up and turning my back on him, crossing my arms with a huff as I went. I heard Edmund stand up and walk around until he was in front of me.

"Oh, don't give me this I-don't-understand-anything persona, I know you. You are more clever than you make out to be. But you've been like this since our fathers left to fight and you were left in that house on your own." I gaped at him in shock.

"How did you know about that?" I whispered shakily. No one knew I was on my own. Absolutely no one. My Dad had told everyone that I was staying with an Uncle who'd come to visit.

"Everyone knew. You don't have an _Uncle Andrew_, we would have met him!" Edmund was looking at me hard, shaking his head. "You were alone in that house, in the middle of an _air raid_ for crying out loud! What if you didn't make it out? What if you had _died_?" I shook my head and closed my eyes feeling tears waiting to well up.

"Stop it." My voice came out in a faint whisper.

"You've been irritable with everyone. You don't have fun anymore -"

"Shut up..." I tried again my voice only coming out a fraction louder than last time.

"You dug a hole in the _snow!_ Don't tell me that's sane behaviour." He continued, ignoring my weak protests for him to stop. Tears continued to well in my eyes threatening to fall.

"S-stop it." I closed my eyes and turned away from him covering my ears and shaking my head.

"And you keep lying to us saying that you're alright when really, you are just as scared as the rest of us!" I spun around and glared at him.

"Stop it Edmund! Just stop it!" I yelled at him with tears falling down my face. I felt Edmund pull me in to a hug that I didn't return and I continued to cry on to his jumper. Hours seemed to pass before I pulled away and wiped my tears away. "Okay, I'm not alright. There I said it, I'm not okay. I'm not fine. But what am I supposed to do about it?"

"Talk to us. Or at least talk to me." he added when he saw me shaking my head.

"You'll think I'm mad and you won't want to be my friend anymore." I mumbled feeling another tear fall down my cheek. I didn't bother wiping it away.

"If it's any consolation, I already do think you're mad." he chuckled. I looked up and stared at him. "In a good way, silly. And I'm still here, aren't I?" I reluctantly nodded my head. "Well then, you've got nothing to worry about."

I began wiping away my tears when I suddenly felt Edmund's hands on my chin. He lifted my head up, looking at me earnestly and then with two of his fingers, touched the corners of my mouth and pushed them upwards. "There you go, now smile!" I let out a laugh as a smile appeared on my face. I couldn't help it.

"Thanks Ed." I tearfully smiled at him.

"My pleasure. Now, is there anywhere where we can get some food? I'm starving." he asked rubbing his belly as I faintly heard a rumbling sound. I smiled and began to lead him back to the tents. Before we reached the campsite however I stopped, remembering how the Narnians glaring at me and what Ivy had told me before I found Ed.

Noticing that I had stopped, Edmund turned back to me with a frown. "That's a nice necklace by the way. Where did you get it?" he asked gesturing to my necklace. I blinked and looked down realising that my hand was touching it.

"Oh, it's from my mother." I said quietly back. His eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Your mother? I thought she left you when you were a baby." he walked back to me and, after a hesitant look at me, touched the pendant, looking at it closely.

"She did, this was in my locket that Dad gave me. I don't know how it got in there." He frowned and let go of the pendant letting it fall back on to my collarbone.

"There's probably an explanation for it." I sighed in frustration.

"I know. I've been trying to figure it out but I'm getting nowhere." Edmund took my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Don't worry about it. I'll help you figure it out."

"You will?"

"Yeah. I mean we're friends now. Of course I'm going to help you." I smiled at him. A thought suddenly appeared in my head.

"Edmund, could I ask you to do something for me please?" I asked. He nodded. "Could you just call me Alexandra, not Alex. And could you tell the others that too?" He raised an eyebrow and looked at me puzzled.

"Sure, okay. Why?"

"Alex is the old me. I don't want to go back to that. I want to move on." He smiled and nodded.

"Okay, whatever you want. Now about something to eat?" I laughed and hooked my arm around his, leading him towards the tents.

"This way, but first you'll have to have a wash and change your clothes." He looked at me in confusion.

"What's wrong with my clothes?" he said looking down at himself. I scrunched my nose at him.

"Well frankly you smell like the back end of a dumb horse." His jaw dropped in mock offense.

"Thanks very much, honestly insulting me already!" he shook his head as we laughed our way back to the tents. I felt as if I could walk on thin air now that I had my best friend back. Nothing could ruin this day.

Or so I thought.


	17. Jadis comes to visit

_Hello, _

_I have another update for you, so sorry it's been long. I have no computer at home at the moment so I've been using the library ones and they only allow you on one for two hours a day. So pretty slow. But here's the next one._

_Thank you all for the reviews they cheer me up to no end. I don't think I've got any new readers but I don't mind, I'm pretty happy with the ones I have. :) Okay I lie, I'm super happy. I think this has a bit of a crappy ending but I did have a better one before but I forgot to write it down, so you've got this one. Please tell me what you think plus any criticism is welcome as long as it's not over the top and you can give advice on improvements. _

_Happy summer. Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Jadis comes to visit and I look at my family tree.**

"Narnia's not going to run out of toast Ed," Lucy commented with a giggle as we all stared at Edmund as he wolfed down pieces of toast like there was no tomorrow. It didn't even seem to touch the sides. Edmund looked up wide-eyes, a piece of toast in his hand ready to shove it in to his mouth. I shook my head and giggled as he blushed, hastily grabbing a cup of orange juice from the table and gulped it down faster than you can say "drainpipe".

"Yeah Ed, slow down before you choke." I said picking up my napkin and wiped his mouth of the orange bits that got caught on his bottom lip. Edmund looked away from me as his fingers began to fidget with the hem of his shirt. When we had arrived at the tents earlier, Edmund had found Narnian clothes like ours in his hammock ready for him to put on after he had a wash down at the stream. When he had come back I was surprised to see him in a clean white cotton shirt and a brown tunic with trousers. The clothes fitted him quite well, almost as if they were tailored for him. He looked really smart too. Well, he _did_ look smart. Now he was just getting buttered toast crumbs and little blobs of strawberry jam all over himself. I turned to Lucy and rolled my eyes. "Honestly, boys and their table manners."

"Edmund, when was the last time you ate?" Susan asked with a frown on her face. Edmund frowned thoughtfully, absently counting on his fingers.

"Um, breakfast…I can't remember how long ago." Edmund shrugged. Susan shook her head and immediately filled Edmund's plate with more toast. Susan was definitely the mother hen of the family. Either that or she's just fattening him up to be put in a pie later. I giggled at the thought.

"That was three days ago, no wonder you're starving." I said looking at him worriedly. I thought he looked skinny. Susan and Lucy stared at me in surprise.

"Was it really three days ago that we found the wardrobe?" Susan asked. I nodded. "I didn't even know it had been that long. So much has happened."

"Indeed. How can you remember that, Alexandra?" Lucy asked. I sighed in relief that Lucy had said my full name instead of just Alex. I didn't want to be called that anymore. I shrugged.

"I guess I have a good memory." I smiled at her and took a bite out of a cherry red apple that was for my breakfast. I wasn't really a big eater and I'm a vegetarian. Although, I try to keep that a secret because there are rumours going around saying that Hitler is a vegetarian too. It's never good to be linked to a psychotic dictator in the middle of a war. However, I have a sneaking suspicion that the Pevensies already knew, as there was already a plateful of fruit on my plate when I sat down at the table.

"Well, that's good to know. You'll need to remember the way back." Peter announced from behind us. I jumped in surprise. I didn't even know he was behind us until now. He had been so quiet that I'd forgotten he was there behind us the whole time.

"We're going back?" Susan asked in confusion. Everyone stared at Peter in shock as he pushed away from a boulder he had been leaning against with a silver goblet in his hand.

"You are," Peter nodded solemnly. "Mum told me to keep you all safe -"

"But we're safe here!" I spoke out loud as Edmund and Lucy nodded in agreement. Peter turned his gaze on me.

"Alex, send –"

"Don't call me Alex please," I winced. Peter nodded with a grumble.

"Sorry. Alexandra, sending you all back is the safest option I can think of."

"What, back to England in the middle of a war is safe?" I scoffed. "It's no better there than it is here."

"What about the Narnians?" Lucy pleaded. "They need us, all _four_ of us."

"Lucy you almost drowned, Alexandra almost bled to death and Edmund nearly got killed!" Peter cried in frustration, causing a few Narnians to look our way curiously. "At least in England there were adults to look after us. We're just kids."

"But the Narnians will die if we don't help them. It's the least we can do." I said fixing Peter with a pleading stare. Peter shook his head and rubbed his eyes as if warding off a headache.

"We can't fight in a war." He sighed.

"But Lucy's right Pete," Edmund mumbled quietly. He hadn't said anything at all so far, so I was surprised when he spoke up. "I've seen what the White Witch can do…and being a naïve, childish fool that I was, helped her do it. I'm not going to leave these people behind and suffer for it. Besides, I've already made a promise to someone and I intend to keep it."

"A little bubble of pride welled up inside me at the thought of what Edmund had just said. Edmund had grown up. He was no longer the immature selfish bully that we all saw just days ago, we were beginning to see Edmund as the mature young man I knew he was going to be. I looked around at the others and from their expressions I could tell that they were thinking the exact same thing as me. "Well, that's settled it."

"Peter put his silver goblet on the table in front of us empty and sat down with us. His face wore an expression of pain that made me feel really sorry for him. "Please reconsider. I don't know what I'd do if any of you died."

"Let's put it to the vote." I suggested, looking around at everyone. "All those in favour of leaving the Narnians to fight while we go back to England to be safe and sound?" No hands were raised at all as everyone remained silent. Even Peter kept his hand down. A small smile appeared on my mouth. "All those in favour of staying with the Narnians to fight and helping them win this battle?" Everyone's hands rose into the air including mine even though Peter was a little hesitant at first. We were going to fight even if Peter didn't like it.

"Right then, I'm going to find Falstaff. We were supposed to do some more training, whatever help that will be." I stood up and put my unfinished apple on my plate before heading off to the arena.

"Alexandra?" I stopped and turned around to see Edmund standing up and brushing the toast crumbs from his clothes. "Could I come with you?"

I smiled and nodded. "I should warn you though; Falstaff might make you run around the campsite with buckets full of water." Edmund halted and stared at me in disbelief.

"You're not serious, are you?"

"Does it look like I joking? My muscles are still aching from this morning. I even got this cut when he made me and Peter fight against each other." I showed him a cut on my left arm from where I tried to block with one of my Sais but I slipped a bit when Falstaff shouted, making Peter's sword slip and cut me. Edmund's eyes widened as he stared at my arm in horror.

"And you're still going to get lessons from him?" He asked me incredulously. I shrugged as we stepped in to the arena. I looked around the arena searching for my mentor only to find the place empty. I frowned. He did say we'd meet again later today, didn't he? Or did he mean even later than now? Edmund looked around the area. "Whoa, I've never seen so many weapons before." He let out a low whistle.

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. "_Boys," _Edmund turned to poke his tongue out at me but his eyes widened in shock.

"Alexandra, look out!" he shouted pointing behind me as a tremendous galloping sound appeared in the air, gradually getting louder and louder as it came towards us. As if by instinct, I grabbed my Sais by my waist and spun around blocking the over head hit that was coming down towards my head. It was Falstaff. As I was about to say something offensive another sword swung in to my side. I tried to block it as fast and as effectively as I could but I was still shoved roughly to the side. I was soon bombarded by not one sword but by dozens of them as Falstaff and about ten other centaurs continued to attack. _What on earth is Falstaff trying to do?_ I thought angrily as I fell to the floor amongst the dangerous pairs of horse legs. I screamed as I tried to cover my head from the stampeding hooves. One of the hooves colliding with my head and I let out a yelp.

"FALSTAFF!"

Suddenly, the centaurs scattered. Shakily I looked up to see Ivy fuming next to a worried, frozen-looking Edmund. He looked as white as a sheet and a little shaky himself but my attention quickly changed to Ivy as she stormed forward. Her usually green tinged skin was now sporting a vibrant rose colour and the roots of her earthy brown hair were now turning as red as her eyes with rage as she glared at Falstaff behind me. "How could you be so irresponsible? You could have gotten her killed!"

"Ivy, could you please calm down." Falstaff spoke calmly to the raging dryad. It was truly a spectacle to see. Everything he did seemed to make her angrier. I scuffled away as fast as I could until I was sat beside Edmund, still white as a sheet and barely registering what he was seeing.

"Calm down? Calm down! How can I calm down? What were you thinking, sending a herd of Centaurs to fight her?" Ivy shouted, glaring furiously at him.

"I knew exactly what we were doing. It was a completely controlled attack."

"Controlled? She was on the floor in the middle of a herd of Centaurs, how is that controlled?"

"Ivy," I said as she spun around to look at me. "Ivy, it's okay. I'm fine; I was just a little overwhelmed that's all."

"That still doesn't make it right," She said before rounding her fierce gaze on Falstaff who reared up and stumbled back a bit as if he had been hit by a branch. "What does your godfather think of all of this? I'm sure he would disapprove greatly."

"Actually Oreius already knows what I'm doing and he agrees with it." Falstaff replied crossing his huge muscled arms and looking down at Ivy with an amused smile as she began to splutter in surprise. _Oreius is Falstaff's Godfather? I never knew that, but I suppose I should have guessed…_ I thought in surprise as I stood up next to Edmund. He shook his head as if coming out of a trance.

"Alexandra, are you alright?" He asked worriedly checking my face for any injuries. His hands reached up and gingerly touched a bruise that was slowly beginning to form on my forehead. I winced at the pain.

"I'm fine Edmund. Like I said, I was just a little overwhelmed." I smiled grabbing his wrists and pulling them gently away. Edmund sighed as he stared back at Ivy and Falstaff in wonder.

"So that's a Centaur?" I nodded and he let out a low whistle. "Remind me not to get on the wrong side of him."

"That would be behind him," I muttered to him with a grin to which he returned with a chuckle. "I don't know about you, but I'm more scared of Ivy than I am of Falstaff at the moment." I giggled casting a wary glance at Ivy who was staring at her feet with her hands clasped behind her back. "Or maybe not at this moment…" A bemused smile appeared on my face.

"You don't suppose Ivy and Falstaff… you know, _fancy_ each other do you?" Edmund said absently in a hushed voice as he stared at them in confusion.

"Maybe Ivy does but I don't know about Falstaff." I whispered back as Falstaff smiled at Ivy in a very courteous way. Well, I say courteous, it was more like he was…well, I suppose _coy._

"Well, if Alexandra got hurt it would be on your conscience you know…because it would be your fault and…and…" Ivy stuttered, her face flushing a light green. I could only assume that she was blushing otherwise I'm pretty sure it would be a totally different story.

"Well, my darling Dryad," Falstaff said with a smile which made Ivy take a keen interest in how the grass flattened when she moved her foot in a circle. "If my student was hurt, I'm pretty sure that your unabashed skills in medicine would have saved her."

"I feel slightly sick." Edmund grimaced as we watched on. I crinkled my nose. I felt a bit queasy too. Thankfully not as much as when I had to have that cod liver oil back at the Professor's.

"You're not the only one." I mumbled to him. Before anything could get any worse I decided to cough. Falstaff and Ivy jumped and they looked at us in surprise as if they hadn't noticed we were there until now. "Um, sorry to interrupt but weren't we supposed to have a lesson today?"

"Oh sorry Alexandra," Ivy said in a breathy voice before she curtseyed to Falstaff and hurried past us, a wide giddy smile on her face. Falstaff crossed his arms in front of him and beckoned us forward with a nod of his head. Edmund and I walked towards him, only just noticing that Falstaff was the only Centaur left in the arena. I guess the other must have left before Ivy and Falstaff started talking and we didn't notice them.

"Who's this then? Is he another student?" Falstaff asked as he looked at Edmund critically. Edmund flinched every time that Falstaff prodded his arms, checking that he had any muscle.

"This is Edmund," I said to the Centaur. Falstaff looked up in surprise.

"The Son of Adam that was on the White Witch's side?" I could see Edmund gritting his teeth at the statement. I willed for him to calm down and watched as he took a deep breath.

"Not anymore." Edmund replied coolly. Falstaff turned his attention to Edmund and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so? Well, we'll have to see about that." Falstaff continued to circle around Edmund watching him closely. "Tell me, what is your darkest secret?"

Edmund blinked and stared at the centaur in surprise. I became curious. Why would Falstaff ask him that? Surely he would just start training him first? But there was another reason as to why I was curious. What was Edmund's most darkest secret? He barely opened up to anyone unless he had to, not even his own family.

"I can't tell you that." Ed replied firmly with a shake of his head. The Centaur smiled and nodded in approval. I frowned in confusion. _I thought Falstaff wanted to know what Ed's secret was, so why is he smiling?_

"Good. The White Witch sometimes bewitches people to tell her anything even if they don't mean to." Falstaff said in a serious voice. "That way she could use everything you know against you."

"You seem to know a lot about the White Witch." I said quietly. Falstaff looked at me and nodded but he didn't say anything. Maybe it was one of his dark secrets… Edmund looked suddenly very sick. "Edmund are you alright?" I asked in concern walking over to him and putting my hand to his forehead to check his temperature.

"I told her about you guys. I told her that you were seeing Aslan and I told her about Mr Tumnus helping Lucy. This is all my fault." He groaned putting his head in his hands.

"It's alright Edmund. We've forgiven you, you know that." I said reassuringly, squeezing his shoulder gently. I watched as he shook his head and pulled away turning to Falstaff.

"Can you help me put things right? Can you teach me how to fight?" he asked Falstaff as the centaur watched on. Falstaff turned around and walked away towards the weapons stand, picking up a sword. As he walked back he tested the weight of the sword and the balance, swishing and whirling the blade around like a baton.

"Try this one out." He said passing the sword to Edmund. With a look of surprise on his face, Edmund took the sword and held it, changing his grip every so often until he was comfortable. Falstaff nodded again in approval and then looked at me. "Right then, fix your stance, strengthen you blocks and get ready."

"May I ask why you decided to attack me earlier?" I said as I stood in a fighting stance. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Edmund watching and trying to copy.

"Surprise attack, I was just seeing what you would do if you were attacked by two or more soldiers at once. The physicians are mostly who the enemy go for so that they can guarantee more deaths." I halted and gulped. Would that happen to me? Am I at more risk because I was training with Ivy? "Milady, strengthen you stance."

"Oh, sorry..."

* * *

"Oww…"

"Edmund hold still," I said as I pressed an ice pack against his head. Ivy and Falstaff were stood behind me, supposedly supervising me and checking that I was doing everything right. Not that they were doing that exactly. Note to self; make sure you leave Falstaff _out _of the tent rather than inviting him in.

"Ow! Careful, that hurt." Edmund yelped. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, quit being such a baby, it's only a bruise! At least you don't look like you've been dragged down a rocky cliff." I pressed the ice pack more firmly in to his forehead, watching as he stiffened and then relaxed. A smirk appeared on his face.

"Well, that's probably because I didn't get dragged down a rocky cliff." I gave him a hard glare as his smirk exploded into a toothy grin. "Are you sure you got rid of all of the sticks? I'm pretty sure that bird wants its nest back." I couldn't help the smile that appeared on my face as I gave him a playful shove.

Training this afternoon was a disaster. As soon as I had fixed my stance a few Narnian children decided to run right through the arena and knock me over, dragging me with them down a cliff and landing in the middle of a Talking Bird's nest. It was not a very happy crow I'll tell you now.

Edmund was a lot better at fighting than I thought he would be. A whole lot better than me, anyway. Out of the whole training session Ed only came out with a sprained ankle, a bruise to the head and a few cuts on his arms.

"Are you sure you want to keep fighting?" Falstaff spoke up behind me. I turned around to see the centaur standing alone with his arms crossed and frowning at me.

"Yes. I'm not going to watch from the sidelines if that's what you're thinking." I huffed and turned back to Edmund, peeling off the ice pack to check if the swelling had gone down.

"I meant for today. You seem a bit tired." I tried to think of what I did today. Well, I woke up at sunrise to fight against Pete and run around the campsite with buckets of water, then Edmund came back and I helped Ivy with her things, then Edmund and I had a little chat (and in my case a little cry), then we had lunch and another training session.

"I guess you're right. I could do with a nap." I sighed, feeling a yawn coming along.

"Well, you go back to your sleeping tent and get some sleep. And your highness you can come with me to find Oreius. I think you should learn a bit more from him. He has a different style which I think would be better for you."

"Is he like you?" Edmund asked hesitantly.

"What, with discipline?" Falstaff replied with a bark of laughter. Edmund nodded. "No, he's much worse." Edmund paled and stared at me pleadingly.

"Are you sure you're tired?" I laughed and rolled my eyes.

"You'll be fine Ed."

Suddenly the sound of the conch horn blew through the campsite and Mrs Beaver appeared in the doorway.

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear," She mumbled as she waddled over to us and tugged on Edmund's leg. "You must come quickly. The Witch has asked for an audience with Aslan."

Edmund paled and jumped up staring at the entrance of the tent in fear. He was remembering his time in her captivity I just knew it. There was a haunted look in his eyes. I held his arm and waved my hand in front of his face.

"Ed?" I said. "Ed? It's going to be alright. You're with us now."

"She's not going to settle for that though Alexandra. You should have heard what she was going to do last night." He whispered as Falstaff trotted behind us and pushed us forward gently.

"What? What was she planning to do?" I demanded when I suddenly remembered what the dwarves had said earlier today. _Being betrayed twice by the same person? Not a good move is it? Especially when all traitors belong to her anyway…_ I shook my head and held on to Edmund more firmly.

We walked out of the tent into the middle of the campsite where everyone was gathering. Lucy appeared out of the crowd and grabbed Ed's hand, there were tears welling up in her eyes as she led us to where Peter and Susan were stood, staring at the woman who had appeared in camp.

She looked exactly like she was in my dreams; tall as a tree, pale and cold with coal black eyes and an arrogant scowl on her face. Her eyes were like bottomless pits that I couldn't help but look into. She had seen many things, her own people being murdered, her world's sun growing cold and dying, the deplorable word. I shivered and looked away.

The Witch was looking at Aslan quietly. "You have a traitor in your midst."

"His offence was not against you." Aslan replied coolly. The Witch raised an eyebrow.

"Nonetheless, all traitors belong to me as you very well know. His blood is my property." The Witch cast a look at Edmund like she was waiting to get her hands on him, like he really was her possession.

"Try and take him then!" Peter growled stepping forward and drawing his sword. Edmund looked terrified, staring on in horror and barely breathing. The Witch turned her head to Peter and smirked.

"Do you honestly think that mere force will deny me my right? He came to me and he betrayed you all, therefore he is a traitor." She said evenly before glaring at Peter. "So, put the sword away and stay quiet, little King." Peter stepped back and stared at the ground. I glared at her with all my might. The Witch wore a triumphant smirk on her face and turned around to face the rest of the camp. "Aslan knows that unless I have blood as the law demands, all of Narnia will be overturned and perish in fire and water. That boy," She pointed at Edmund menacingly. I felt Edmund stiffen and grab my hand. "...will die on the Stone Table, as is tradition." The whole camp erupted into angry shouts and roars.

"Silence, I shall speak with you alone." Aslan spoke up, addressing the Witch and turning away, leading her in to his tent. As soon as she was gone Edmund sighed and sat down on the ground. I sat down with him and wrapped my arms around him comfortingly. Soon everyone sat down around us silently, casting glances at Aslan's tent.

An hour seemed to go by before Edmund spoke up. "I'm going to die, aren't I?"

I looked up to see Edmund pulling up grass and the others staring at their brother in horror. "No, of course not dear," Mrs Beaver said putting a clawed hand on his hand. "Aslan will think of something, you'll see."

"Why is it taking so long then?" He groaned and viciously tugged another handful of grass.

"Calm down, it'll only feel worse if you keep worrying about it." I whispered to him.

"How can I not be worried about it? I could be dead by tonight." He snapped pulling away form me.

"We know you're worried Ed, so are we. But Aslan will come up with something." Susan said quietly. Suddenly the tent flap opened and we scrambled up. My heart was beating fast as the Witch walked out towards us. _Oh no, she's won him. Ed's going to die. _I thought helplessly when suddenly the Witch turned away and caught my eye. She frowned and stared at me. I felt cold and looked away. She was scaring me to no end.

Aslan walked out of the tent. "She has renounced her claim on the Son of Adam's blood." The camp erupted in cheers as everyone relaxed at the news. I felt as if someone was watching me and I glanced to see the Witch staring at me. My heart was beating faster in fear as she slowly began to walk towards me. I grabbed the closest thing to me, to stop myself from falling.

She was metres away from me, staring down at me in curiosity. "Indina?"

"Who?" I whispered back. The campsite fell silent as they watched us. The Witch reached out and touched my cheek. Her fingers were rough and as cold as snow. I felt frozen and weak as I held on more firmly to whatever I has holding.

"You're real…"the witch whispered as her fingers slid slowly down my jaw and grabbing my throat tightly. "How are you real? I killed you!"

Her grip was painfully tight around my neck, so tight I thought she was going to crush it or snap my neck. I gasped in pain as a tear slipped down my cheek and my knees buckled. "Let her go!" Lucy shouted stepping forward to charge towards the Witch but with a turn of her head, Lucy fell silent.

"She is not Indina, Jadis." Aslan growled. The Witch turned to Aslan for a fraction of a second before looking at me and letting out a cackle.

"Oh this is rich!" She laughed and a chorus of grunts and cackles and snorts came from her guards that had carried her in to the campsite. I hadn't noticed them because of the Witch. "The bastard child of my cousin, this is hilarious." She lifted me in to the air by my throat and whispered into my ear. "Tell me little one, have the dreams started?"

I felt hollow and cold inside. How could she know? I had never told anyone about my nightmares. So how could she _know_?

"Leave now Witch, you are no longer welcome here." Aslan growled in the distance. Everything was growing quieter except for the numbing buzzing noise in my ears. I felt a burning pain on my cheek before I was thrown to the floor choking and gasping for breath. Tears welled in the corners of my eyes and my throat felt like sandpaper. She knelt down close to me with a sickening smile on her face.

"I'm going to give you a choice little one, join me and you won't die in battle. I can teach you the meaning behind your dreams and I can help you." Her voice sounded like bells, soothing bells that tinkled at winter near the time of Christmas. "Or you can stay here and you will die just like my snivelling cousin. You know what to do; it's in your blood. You're not foolish…"

"_You know what to do,"__An ice-cold voice sneered. I saw a flash of silver rip across my throat…_

I moved away from her and shook my head. The Witch stood up with a huff and turned her back on me. "Very well, then you shall die with the rest of the vermin."

"Leave now and don't ever come back." Aslan said glaring at the Witch as if he was sizing up a predator. The Witch walked over to her guards and with one last turn of her head.

"How do I know your promise will be kept?"

A huge piercing roar filled the air scaring me half to death and causing the Witch to flee with her guards. The Camp erupted once more in cheers at the departure of the Witch. But I didn't notice them. The Pevensies, Mr and Mrs Beaver, Falstaff and Ivy gathered around me asking if I was alright.

"Alexandra, it's okay. Alexandra get up she's gone." Susan coaxed touching my shoulder. She shook me slightly. Edmund knelt down next to her and tapped my cheek.

"Alex, breathe!" he ordered tapping my cheek one last time. I gasped in pain touching my cheek, only to touch something hot, wet and sticky.

"I-I'm bleeding!" I gasped pulling my fingers away to see them covered in crimson blood.

"It's okay, we'll get that fixed." Ivy said soothingly, touching my hand reassuringly. Tears of despair welled in my eyes and I began to cry. "Alexandra it's okay. It's just a cut."

"It's not that Ivy," I whispered through my tears. "Why her?"

Everyone shook their heads in sadness and they didn't answer. No one could. The only one who could give me answers was my mother and she's dead so fat lot of good that was. So I did what I only could do. I sat with the Pevensies and we celebrated that Edmund was still going to live.


	18. The Great Lion is Dead

_Hello!_

_I'm back again with a new chapter. I'll admit I finished this yesterday but I didn't have enough time on the computer at the library to publish this chapter. (Only allowed 2 hours a day.) I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I am not too sure about the ending of this so tell me what you think and I think Alexandra is a bit over the top towards the end but I'm not entirely sure. Please review, I'll be so happy to read them._

_Thank you to all those who have stuck with this story and who have reviewed. I hope you enjoy this. Feel free to criticise but please keep it fair and tell me why and how to improve. Um I think that's all I have to say at the moment. _

_Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**The Great Lion is Dead**

_Skip-Skip-Splash! Skip-Skip-Splash!_

I sighed as a tear slipped down my cheek, leaving behind a slight sting as it slid over my cut. Closing my eyes I tipped my head back listening closely to the wind blowing in the trees, the rush of the water crashing against the rocks and the beautiful tune of the songbirds singing high in the treetops. _Ha, you sound like you're going to die soon,_ my grandmother's voice chuckled light-heartedly in my head. As I thought about it, I almost thought I was going to die. I mean in all fairness a huge battle was practically around the corner and a lot of people were going to die. What's to say I won't be one of them?

In the distance I heard the quiet sound of hooves clip-clopping against the ground. Tightening my grip around the smooth cold pebble in my hand, I spun around throwing the small stone at whatever was nearing me. "Ow," exclaimed a voice as the pebble hit its target. I opened my eyes in surprise to see Falstaff walking slowly over to me, rubbing his left shoulder as he went. I turned my back to him, picking up another stone and threw it. I still hadn't really gotten used to the Centaurs and other various Narnians being comfortable walking around the campsite without wearing any clothes. It was just not something you could get used to quickly.

"I thought training was over for today." I called back over my shoulder and skipped a stone across the stream. _Skip-Skip-Skip-Splash!_ Falstaff stopped beside me and crossed his arms in front of his bare chest.

"It is but their Highnesses were getting worried about you. It's quite late in the evening." He replied, picking up a stone and throwing it across the stream before it plummeted into the water with an audible splash. I glanced up expecting to see the normal bright clear blue of the sky but instead I saw it being taken over with warm pinks, yellows and oranges. I shrugged and skipped another stone. Falstaff glanced at me with a frown before clearing his throat. "You know, some would say that cut is a mark of evil." He gestured lightly to the cut that the White Witch had made on my face.

"And what would you say it is?" I asked coolly, looking up at Falstaff. He shrugged his shoulders casually and scratched his chin. I had only noticed the smallest wisps of hair on the tip of his chin.

"I'd say it's a mark of misfortune," He said quietly. I gazed up at him questioningly before he continued. "You're not the only one with scars you didn't want." He turned to his side and I saw a jagged scar on the left flank of the horse part of him, surrounded by dozens of tiny little scars scattered all over his body. The scars weren't so noticeable that you'd see them from miles around but up close they looked like different shades of brown coat.

"What happened?" I asked gently staring at all of the scars. How had I not seen them before?

"When I was a young foal, the White Witch was gathering followers and attacking those who resisted her advances of power. Our herd were some of the few who did." He said skipping a stone as I sat on a nearby boulder. "One night, her soldiers ran through the Western Wood where we lived at the time, cutting down the trees of the dryads and polluting the streams where the naiads and nymphs lived. Ivy's tree was nearly cut down too but thankfully her tree and her siblings were bypassed. My parents sent me away with Oreius in hope that I would escape." He paused and fell silent, staring ahead of him as if he were seeing them right now. He shook his head. They stayed behind and fought to buy us some time, but there were too many."

"That's so sad." I whispered as Falstaff nodded sadly.

"Their attempt was brave but I'm afraid in vain. On the edge of the Dancing Lawn I was ambushed by one of her soldiers and Oreius had been knocked out. I was then bound and gagged like a dumb animal, thrown unceremoniously on the back of a cart and taken to the Witch's lair." He let out a shiver and I began to think about whether Edmund could remember being in the Witch's lair. It must have been horrific. "I was tortured along with dozens of other Narnians under the Witch's orders. She demanded our loyalty or our blood. So, naturally, she got my blood." He let out a dry laugh and I shivered at the thought. _How could he find this funny?_

"Oreius rescued me and all those who hadn't crumbled under the pain two days later and we ran to the mountains on the border of Archenland and hid there, slowly building up our numbers over the years until Aslan returned. The others still remain in her courtyard."

"Is that why you know so much about the White Witch?" He nodded stepping from one hoof to the other.

"Unfortunately, yes."

I felt disgusted and sick right to my very core. How could someone torture another being? Even if they are an evil person they must have some morals or a conscience somewhere within them, right?

"Why do I have to be related to such a…a -"

"Witch..?" Falstaff suggested with a wry smirk. I nodded feeling deflated and flat. I put my head on my knees feeling the hopelessness and unfairness of my bad luck. I heard Falstaff trotting over to me before he awkwardly knelt down beside me. "Sometimes, I think it's not a matter of which person you're related to but what you do to make you different."

"I don't understand."

"Alright, who raised you when you were growing up?" he asked looking at me. I turned my head to him and thought.

"Well, there was my father and my grandmother. But then my father was recruited to fight in the war and my grandmother died." I paused remembering the time when I found out about her death. Was it really only three days ago? I hadn't even had time to grieve for her. I ignored the tear that threatened to fall down my cheek. Now was _not_ the time for crying. "Then I guess, Mrs Pevensie and the others."

Falstaff nodded. "Well, are they good people?"

"Yes, of course. But I don't know how this is related to the White Witch." I sighed.

"It has everything to do with the White Witch." Falstaff replied cryptically. I restrained the urge to roll my eyes. "Now, did the White Witch raise you or did she not?"

"I've just told you, I was raised by Mrs Pevensie and the others." I said frustratingly. Was he even listening to me?

"And would you say that you and their highnesses are good people?" he asked. I groaned and through my hands in the air in frustration.

"Yes, the Pevensies are good people. Well, as good as you can be." I said, remembering what Edmund had done. "But you're still not telling me what the heck you're on about."

"Hold up alright and just listen." Falstaff spoke calmly. I shut my mouth and bit my tongue to stop myself from speaking out. "Okay, so you were raised by good people, with caring and loyal friends and a loving father I assume?" I nodded. "So what does being related to the White Witch have to do with anything?"

I blinked. _Did he just trick me?_ I thought as I went over what he had said. I hadn't really thought about it in that sense. The White Witch didn't raise me; she didn't even know anything of my existence. So what does she have to do with anything in my life? I smiled and knelt on the boulder wrapping my arms around Falstaff in a hug to which he happily returned. "Thank you," I mumbled as Falstaff chuckled quietly.

"No problem." He said and we broke away and stood up. "By the way, when did you learn to throw like that?"

"Oh, I don't know. I've always been able to do it." I shrugged my shoulders. A smile began to grow on his mouth.

"Hmm, I've just had a thought." He murmured. "Pick up one of your Sais and throw it at that tree trunk over there." He pointed towards a tree trunk lying on the floor about twenty feet away from me. I unsheathed one of my Sais from my waist, aimed and threw the blade straight at the wood. The blade flipped through the air like a professional gymnast before it hit the wood with a thud.

I looked up at Falstaff to see his face impassive. "Hmm, not bad. What about that hole in the pile of boulders on the top of the hill?" He pointed at a huge pile of boulders at the top of the hill that separated the river from the campsite. There was a gap right in the middle of the pile, a gap so small I nearly missed it at first. I took a deep breath aimed the blade and threw. The blade chipped off the side of the pile and tumbled through the air over the hill and out of sight.

A yelp filled the air. I glanced up uneasily at Falstaff who pretty much looked like a little kid who was expected to get punished. We ran up the hill as fast as we could until we were at the top looking down at Susan covering her head and trembling.

"Oops, sorry Susan," I mumbled heading down and picking her up. She stared up at me with wide eyes.

"That was you." It sounded more like a question rather than a statement. Falstaff tried to cover up a chuckle behind me as he picked up my sae standing straight up in the earth next to where Susan's head had been. A wave of guilt flew through me.

"Yes, sorry again."

She shook her head in astonishment and turned to me. "Alexandra, are you alright now? Lucy and I were just going to go to bed."

I nodded. "Is it really that late? I must have lost track of the time." I said feigning innocence, casting a look at Falstaff who shrugged his shoulders. I turned back to Susan. "I'll be along in a minute. I just want to finish a few things first."

She nodded and headed back towards the campsite. I turned to Falstaff, letting out a breath I didn't even know I was holding in. "That was close."

Falstaff nodded as a smirk appeared on his face. "It was close, but not close enough. If we could hone in that aim -"

"Whoa, hold up. What? I could have killed her." I interrupted throwing my arms up.

"Exactly, what if she were a sneak attack in the middle of battle? That would have been it." He snapped his fingers and looked more closely at my sae in his hands. "May I borrow these until the morning? I have an idea that might make it easier to hit the target."

"Er…" I really wasn't sure about leaving my weapons with Falstaff, but to be honest it might make things quieter if he's busy doing something else. I could do with a break. "Sure. What harm could it do?"

"You have my word," he said with a solemn nod of his head before he turned and walked back over the hill to collect the other one.

I headed back to the campsite with one thing left on my mind that I had to do before I went to bed. Heading towards the centre of camp, there was only one question running around in my head. _Why?_

"Aslan, can I speak with you?" I said standing outside of Aslan's tent. I heard the sound of him moving around before he answered.

"Come in child." I headed in and my eyes fell on the huge majestic lion. Everything seemed darker inside the tent despite the brightness of the sun setting outside. Aslan looked tired as well and less taken care of than he was looking earlier. His mane looked matted with huge clumps of fur and his eyes seemed like dull amber than the usual golden.

"Aslan, are you alright?" I asked, all my other thoughts flying out of my mind. He nodded painting a smile on his face.

"Yes child, now what is it you wanted to speak to me about?" He asked in a tone that sounded like he wanted to change the subject. I decided to humour him. If he didn't want to talk about it then it wasn't as if it was in my power to make him talk. I mean he was a lion.

"Earlier today…the witch said that she killed my mother." I said slowly meeting his gaze. He sighed and patted the ground before him with one of his huge paws. I sat down. "But you said that she came to you and you told her to wait outside your kingdom. That means she's alive, right? The Witch was lying."

He remained silent and shook his head. A lump appeared in my throat and my eyes began to sting with tears. The little bubble of hope inside me popped and I felt suddenly very hollow inside. "Child, it's true. Your mother is dead. I'm sorry."

"Why didn't you tell me?" I whispered not trusting my voice to speak any louder than that.

"I didn't know how. I had thought that with everything you had lost before, if I said that she was gone then you wouldn't listen to me. You'd turn away from me." He said sadly. "I should have told you earlier, I'm sorry."

"You made me believe she was still alive. I thought I'd be able to see her." My voice shook as I spoke. I didn't know whether I was more upset or angry.

"You will be able to see her, just not yet. It is not yet time for you to meet her." He said positively.

"When? Why can't I see her now?" I demanded feeling my anger building up.

"It will only distract you from what is to come." He said seriously. "I must be truthful with you now and tell you that you have a choice."

"What choice?"

"You're life here will be hard and filled with misery and heartache, but there will be times that will be the happiest moments of your life. You will be able to stay and live this life along with the Pevensies or you can go home back to England and live another life there." He said his eyes boring in to mine. "What do you choose?"

"Why do I have to choose? Why can't you choose for me?" I said wiping my eyes in frustration. I didn't want to choose. Why should I?

"Because it is _your_ life, it would not be fair if I chose a life for you that will make you unhappy." He said. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You just don't want to get the blame if I choose wrong don't you?" I snapped glaring at him. He growled quietly and I shuffled away.

"There is no right or wrong answer for what you choose. It is up to you. You have the freedom to choose what you want to do with your life and now it is time to choose. Which life do you want?" he said as I fell silent and began to think.

On the one hand I had a life with the Pevensies and it would be unhappy and miserable. On the other hand if I go back I will maybe have a happier life on my own until my father came back from the war. _If_ the war had ended by then. But there was that bit about the happy moments in the life with the Pevensies. And they were my family as well weren't they? I had already explained that to Falstaff.

"Which will you choose, Alexandra?" Aslan asked again and I imagined a coin flipping through the air. Heads I stay, tails I go. Heads. Tails. Heads. Tails…

"I'll stay."

Aslan nodded not even having to ask if I was sure. He smiled and nuzzled his nose in to the side of my head. "Now, go to bed child, you will have a big day tomorrow." There was a slight sad undertone to his voice and a niggling little thought began to crawl to the front of my head.

"Aslan, are you sure you're alright?" I asked unsurely standing up and turning towards the entrance of his tent. He nodded and nudged me towards the entrance. I stopped at the flaps and turned back to him as he started to disappear in to the shadows. "Aslan, what did you promise the White Witch for Edmund's life?"

"Goodnight Alexandra." He spoke and lay down, turning his head away from me. I sighed and walked out trying to ignore the thought to turn back and stay with him.

* * *

Susan and Lucy were hidden behind a bush looking on to a sight before them. It was dark apart from the eerie orange glow before them. I knelt beside them and peered at the sight as Lucy and Susan gasped and turned away.

The White Witch was stood triumphantly on a raised slab of stone with a huge bundle of brown coloured fur lay tied up at her feet. She was dressed in a black dress, as black as her eyes as she stared down. Her minions were jeering and roaring in malice. There were black dwarves, hags, werewolves, Minotaur's and other horrific creatures that seemed to have jumped right out of my _Greek Myths_ book.

The witch sneered down at the bundle. It was a body. A very familiar body that had once seemed so warm. "How can they still be scared of him?" Susan sobbed beside me staring on with wet tearful eyes. _No…it can't be…_

The witch raised a knife in to the air. It was made of what looked like onyx or stone. My heart thudded in my chest. My breathing was coming in frequent panicky gasps as if I was there on the stone table myself.

"Tonight, the deep magic _will _be appeased! And tomorrow we will take Narnia forever!" The Witch cried in to the air with a maniac crazed look in her eyes.

"No, you evil witch, no!" Lucy sobbed in to Susan's shoulder. Susan rocked her back and forth making soothing shushing noises, just like her mother would do when Lucy would get upset.

"With this knowledge, despair…" The Witch cried, the knife pointing straight down. I began to panic. I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe. All I could do was watch on from behind the bushes. "And die!"

She brought the knife down and I screamed feeling a piercing blow in my side. I shot up in bed screaming and crying, touching my right side and the rest of my body for any wounds and blood and finding nothing. _Please, please be all a bad dream, please. _I begged in my thoughts as I looked around the tent at the hammocks for Susan and Lucy.

They were empty.

"Edmund, Peter!" I shouted rushing out of bed and out of the tent running across the camp and in to the boys. They were sound asleep, lounging around in their hammocks that rocked them back and forth gently. "Edmund, Peter wake up! Wake up please!"

I shook them awake, tears falling from my eyes and trembling all over. Peter eased his eyes opened, rubbing the sleep from them tiredly as he went. As soon as he saw me he hurriedly sat up and pulled me into a hug rubbing my arm soothingly. "Alexandra, it was just a dream. There's nothing to worry about." I shook my head and pulled away. Edmund sat up groggily in his hammock and stared at us confused.

"Alexandra, why are you in here? It's got to be midnight." He said rubbing his sleepy eyes.

"Listen to me, Susan and Lucy are gone." I sobbed wiping away my tears. They stared at me in confusion. "And I h-had an n-nightmare with them in it -"

"It was just a dream; they probably just went to the loo." Peter shrugged, trying to sound reasonably even though there was a slight nervous shake in his voice. Edmund nodded in agreement lying back in his hammock.

"No Peter, you don't understand. He's gone! Aslan's gone too, she killed him!" I broke down in tears leaning my head against his shoulder. I felt Peter tense underneath me and turn his head to Edmund who was sitting up in his hammock with a worried look on his face.

"Okay, Alexandra I'm going to check in his tent. Edmund look after her and try to calm her down whilst I'm gone." He pulled me up and sat me down next to Edmund, who wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I looked up through bleary eyes to see Peter tugging on his boots and picking up Rhindon before heading out of the tent. The whole tent fell silent as Edmund held me. I wiped my eyes and rested my head on his shoulder feeling tired. It felt like a whole millennium went by before either of us spoke.

"What's happening to me Ed?" I asked in a hushed voice. I felt his head turned to me.

"What do you mean?" he asked confused. With a sniffle, I sat up and looked at him.

"Ever since the bombings started I've been having nightmares. At first I thought it was just because of the trauma but then I started to dream of my mother." I confessed looking down at my hands fidgeting with the hem of my nightdress. "But they've been getting worse ever since we were evacuated. I've had a nightmare almost every night. I have barely slept at all but I'm too scared to go to sleep in case I have another nightmare."

"They're just dreams though; it's not as if they're going to become real." I shook my head and looked up at him. He stared back at me, his eyes looking black in the dark light. I shook my head trying to rid myself of the memory of her.

"I dreamt of you in the witch's cell and of you on the cliff by the river." I whispered feeling heat come to my cheeks as I spoke. "You were chained up and crying in the cell -"

"How..?" he breathed out, his jaw dropping in shock.

"And she slapped you because you lied to her on the cliff edge. That's how you got the cut on your lip." I watched as he shifted back from me. It felt like I had been hit in the chest. "Don't move back please." I reached towards him but he scrambled off the hammock. I felt more hot tears flowing down my cheeks.

"No, wait. Just let me get my head around this." He stood in the middle of the tent with his back towards me, running his hand through his hair.

"Do you s-see what I mean n-now Ed?" I said hastily wiping my eyes. He turned around to face me, his whole body shaking slightly as he did. "Something is happening to me a-and I…I'm s-scared."

He took a deep breath and started to pace back and forth. "You've been having these dreams since the beginning of the war. Maybe you're right maybe you're just having these dreams because of the trauma." He paused in the middle of his pacing and turned to me. He didn't look at me instead he just looked at a spot above my head. _He can't even look at me, _I thought as I felt another blow in my chest. "But that doesn't make sense, the witch knew about your nightmares."

I paled and stared at him in horror. "How did you know that?"

"You grabbed my arm when you fell, but Peter heard as well." He said flippantly turning back to pace in the tent. _So the other's heard, was that why Susan was worried earlier?_ I thought, wondering what she was thinking now. But then again, I probably already knew what was on her mind at the moment and it had nothing to do with me.

"So what am I going to do?" I asked watching as Edmund continued to pace, staring at the floor.

"You'll have to tell someone; Falstaff or Ivy or even Oreius." He said finally.

"No!" I scrambled out of the hammock and grabbed his arms, forcing him to look at me. "No, please don't tell anyone!"

"We have to Alexandra." He said reasonably, turning his head up to look at the canvas of the tent. I grabbed his face and pulled it down.

"Look at me!" I shouted at him keeping a tight hold of his head despite his attempts to make me let go. "I'm begging you, please don't tell anyone."

"Why shouldn't we tell someone? They might be able to help." I could see the thoughts running around in his head but I shook my head.

"Think about it Ed, the Narnian's are in war with the White Witch. If they knew about me having these nightmares they'll think I'm some sort of spy for her. They're already suspicious of me as it is." I thought about the looks I got when I first arrived in camp.

After what felt like hours, he looked down at me finally and touched my shoulders. "They'll understand though. Falstaff and Ivy know you."

"But the rest of the Narnians don't know me. Please don't tell anyone Ed. Please." I was trying so hard to make him see that telling someone was a bad idea. I had to get through to him. "I'm telling you if that helps, I haven't told anyone else. I'm begging you. I'll do anything you want for the rest of my life but please don't tell anyone." I laid my head against his chest and hugged him tightly around his waist. "Please Ed. Please -"

The sound of the tent opening made me jump. I let go and spun around to see Peter, white-faced and wide-eyed staring at the both of us. _How long had he been there? Was he listening to our conversation?_ I thought desperately.

"Pete, what's wrong?" Edmund asked worriedly casting a glance at me.

"Aslan's gone. His tent's completely empty and he's not in the camp. Alexandra's right, he's gone." Peter stared at me in astonishment. "But how did you know?"

I looked up at Edmund in fear that he would say something. He stared at me and our eyes met. He looked sadly at me as if he was saying sorry. _No, please Ed no!_ He turned to his brother. "She um, she was worried about Aslan too, Peter. I mean come on, you thought something was wrong with him too."

I blew out a sigh of relief that Peter didn't seem to notice. "I know, but I didn't think he'd do something like this." He groaned running an anxious hand through his sandy blonde hair. He looked up at us. "Right, Alexandra could you get dressed and both of you meet me outside Aslan's tent in ten minutes. Go on." Peter hurried out of the tent and silence fell once more between us.

I turned to Edmund with a look of relief. "Edmund thank you -"

"Don't make me regret this Alexandra." He interrupted pointing a long thin finger at me. "As soon as this whole war is over then we tell someone. No exceptions, understand?"

I reluctantly nodded as Edmund walked back over to his hammock and picked up his sword that was leaning against the top of his hammock. "Ed, do you think this is it? Are we going to fight tomorrow?"

"Looks like it." He said curtly, tying his sword belt around his waist. "Best to go and do what Pete says." I sighed and headed out of the tent towards mine. What were we going to do?


	19. Preparing for Battle

_Hello mi amigos._

_I am in such a happy mood, not only because I'm updating this story but also because I have finally got Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick. I'm so happy. _

_Anyway, thank you all so much for reviewing this story. So, so happy. Welcome to the story wiccagirl, I really hope you enjoy this story. Also, I have a story recommendation for all those who like my story to also read my dear friend Firefly12.12's story Worthy. She is an awesome writer but has barely any reviews. She has been a big help with brainstorming sessions that makes both our stories feel awesome. _

_If, by the end of this chapter, that you're thinking "What the hell is Alex doing?" All will be revealed in due time. Mwa ha ha. Evil laugh, gotta love it. :) :D_

_All reviews welcome. Enjoy!_

_Ps. Firefly and I were also thinking of doing a mini one-shot competition for the Narnia stories, would anyone be interested?_

_**17th October 2011 - I'm thinking about killing off one of my characters but I'm not sure who. I've been thinking about some of your reviews and also thinking that the next chapter is a battle scene, so my dark thoughts are creeping in to my head and is whispering to snip someone's life chord. Please give me your thoughts. I think they might help me decide.**  
_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Preparing for Battle**

My heart was hammering against my ribs as I made my way over to Aslan's tent. As soon as the word came out of Aslan's death, all of the Narnians around the camp immediately set to work with an unwavering fury to finish making the weapons and armour for the battle that was bound to be fought within a matter of hours. In light of this development, Peter had called an emergency meeting to create a battle plan.

As I walked up to the entrance, I spotted Peter standing hunched over a table staring down at a map of Beruna where, according to Falstaff, is our best chance of fighting the enemy. Standing in various places around the table next to Peter was Edmund, dressed in his brown tunic with his sword tied around his waist, Oreius, an impassive look on his face staring down at the map, and Falstaff who was standing off to the far end of the table looking on with a grim look on his face. Now that I saw Falstaff and Oreius near each other, I saw small similarities with the way they held themselves. Strong guarded shoulders; dark calculating looks either strategizing battle plans or military artillery. It seemed so obvious that they were related now and from what Falstaff had told us about his godfather during the training sessions, I'm surprised I hadn't noticed before.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked putting on my business head and pushing all of the other thoughts to the back of my mind. I couldn't afford to be distracted by anything else. In spite of this, my eyes wandered over to Edmund to find him staring determinedly down at the map.

Peter looked up at me and his eyebrows rose in surprise. I looked down at myself. I was wearing a long, burgundy dress made out of velvet, with a thick leather bodice. I hadn't really thought much of it at first when I grabbed it out of the trunk of clothes at the end of my camp bed. My necklace lay on my chest over the thin linen undershirt that stopped the leather rubbing against my skin. Peter shook his head and frowned down at the map. "Um, Oreius, how many soldiers do we have?" he asked the older Centaur. Although he looked quite young, I could see a small amount of silver hairs in the horse coat and in his hair.

"We have about a couple thousand, but not enough to fight against the Witch without any casualties." Oreius replied in a low and serious voice. Peter gulped running a hand through his hair.

"But the medics will do their best." Falstaff said causing everyone to look at him. "We have around thirty or so dryads and a few fauns who are trained well in emergency aid."

"And I can help too." I spoke up. Falstaff frowned uneasily at me.

"Milady, are you sure you can do this? The fighting hasn't been very successful I'll have to admit. You might end up just being a liability, with all due respect of course." Falstaff said respectively. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edmund nodding his head in agreement but he didn't say anything.

"I already told you, I'm not going to stand off on the sidelines and watch you all fighting without helping myself." I said firmly. "Besides, we're going to need everyone we can get."

"I agree." Oreius nodded. "However, the children must be taken someplace safe with their mothers."

"Mr and Mrs Beaver's home was destroyed by the White Witch so they can't go there. Maybe the Western Woods would be a safer place." Peter suggested looking up at the two Centaurs.

"Well, there is the safe-house deep in the Woods, but it hasn't been used in years. It might have fallen into disrepair." Falstaff spoke with a frown on his face.

"It'll have to do for now." Oreius said turning his head back to Peter. "What are you're orders for the battle?"

Peter fell silent and stared at the map. The amount of pressure that Peter was under must be immense. I could see his eyes searching the maps and papers in front of him as if they were concealing some hidden meaning behind them. His jaw was set determinedly as he sighed and rubbed his eyes in frustration. "I don't know if I can do this." He whispered.

"Of course you can do this Pete. You're a born leader." I said reassuring him and giving his hand a gentle squeeze. He started to shake his head.

"Alexandra's right. You have to lead us." Edmund agreed staring hard at Peter.

"But I can't Ed."

"Aslan believed you could," Edmund stressed. "And so do I."

"I do too." Peter looked up at the both of us, taking a deep breath before he shook his head. He stared at the map before looking up at Oreius with a questioning look.

"If we split our forces into two groups, the archer's serving as reinforcements and the main cavalry charging in first," Peter said indicating on the map where the first group would go and then where the second would go. "We might be able to reserve our strength."

"And we can situate the archers by the rocks too. It'll give us more of an edge on the enemy." Edmund suggested, his left hand resting on his chin and standing beside Falstaff.

"This is like a game of chess." I muttered to myself. I glanced up to see Edmund and Peter looking at me. I felt my cheeks warm at their gazes. "I mean, um, well I suppose it is, isn't it? You've got the pawns in the front row and the more important pieces in the back." I glanced at Edmund questioningly. "Am I right?"

He nodded as his eyes flickered down to the map. Peter glanced from me to Edmund and back again with a frown before he shook his head. "I guess you're right. Um, sorry but could you leave for a minute please? Maybe check on Ivy and the Dryads."

I blinked in confusion at Pete. "Why?"

"Please?" His eyes bore in to my with a silent command to do what he said for this once. I didn't know why he wanted me to leave but I guess he must have his reasons. I sighed and nodded turning to leave the tent.

"I'll come with you." Falstaff spoke up turning around and walking beside me. We walked in silence except for the soft _clip-clop_ of Falstaff's hooves hitting the cushioned ground. I glanced up to Falstaff only to see him staring straight ahead. His jaw was set in a determined way that I had only ever seen in Peter before.

"Falstaff," I asked tentatively as we walked. He looked down at me in surprise, as if he had only just noticed that I was there.

"Yes, milady." He replied his face free of emotion. I slowed my steps until I came to a stop.

"Have you ever been in a war?" I asked hearing a slight shake in my voice as I spoke.

"No, I'm glad to say I haven't." Falstaff spoke after a minute of silent thought. He didn't sound very glad.

"Do you think we're going to make it through this?" I asked glancing up at him as we walked towards the First Aid tent. The sun was slowly rising on the horizon shining an eerie orange glow across the campsite. Narnians were rushing about making weapons and shields for all of the soldiers who were going to fight. But there were also other Narnians, females and children, saying their last tearful goodbyes to their husbands and fathers and other family members. Would everyone make it through this battle? Would they survive? Despite only being here for three or four days, I had felt more at home than I have anywhere else.

"I don't know." Falstaff sighed. In that moment, Falstaff seemed to look much older than his usual years. I couldn't help but feel this sense of foreboding coming on the horizon.

"Falstaff," Ivy called suddenly running towards us from the woods. "Falstaff I've just heard the news! Is it true? Is Aslan really dead?" An uncomfortable silence descended upon us all as the harsh truth was uttered. A rush of sorrow and guilt threatened to engulf me like an oncoming tide crashing into the shore.

"Yes Ivy he's dead." Falstaff muttered sadly as Ivy gasped in horror, tears falling down her light green face.

"What are we going to do? Have we surrendered? Are we going to fight?" Ivy blubbered as floods of tears fell from her eyes. The raw fear and panic that shone in her eyes were enough to make me fell nervous and scared too. What was it going to be like, fighting in the middle of a bloodthirsty battle? I couldn't even begin to think about what might happen. Just to think that the war is just a few hours away. I began to shake slightly with fear as Ivy grew more hysterical by the minute. "Falstaff what are we going to do?"

Falstaff grabbed hold of Ivy's shoulders and grounded her to a halt. "Ivy, listen to me and calm down. We're going to get through this, Ivy look at me. Don't you remember what Aslan told us when we first came to camp?" Ivy nodded with a sniffle, looking up at Falstaff with wide teary eyes. "But we're still here and we're still going to be here when this battle is over and the witch is dead." He pulled her in to a hug where Ivy's head only came up to the bottom of Falstaff's waist. A hollow feeling filled me inside as I watched on, feeling as if I was intruding on an intimate embrace. It seemed like every time I was within two metres of Falstaff and Ivy together, I felt like I should leave them to it.

"Um, Falstaff," I asked hesitantly steeping forward and patting Falstaff on his arm to get his attention. He turned his head to me without letting go of Ivy. "Do you have my Sais?" He blinked in surprise before gasping and indicating to his hind quarters where a leather strap wrapped around his body. I could just see the lion head-tipped handles poking out of the leather sheaves. "Oh, thank you." I untied the belt with a smile growing on my face, happy that I had my weapons back firmly tied around my waist. "What did you want them for anyway?"

"I made some extra protection for you. Weapons, shields, armour that kind of thing. The metal used to make those Sais has very special properties." Falstaff spoke over his shoulder to me. "I'll get one of the dwarves to give them to you before the battle."

The sound of the conch horn blew strongly through the air, alerting everyone to get up and move out. The war was finally here. All the time that I had been dreading this fight, the battle was finally here. My heart was racing at the thought. There was only a little amount of time left to say my goodbyes and good lucks. Edmund's and Peter's faces suddenly appeared in my mind and the hollow feeling inside me grew bigger like a bleeding pierce through the heart. Would they make it through this battle? Peter probably would because he's had more training than Edmund but still there is every chance that something might go wrong and one of them is hurt.

Oreius was galloping towards Falstaff with a serious look on his face, frowning at his godson comforting Ivy. Something told me inside that maybe Ivy's mother wasn't the only one concerned with their relationship. Whatever their relationship was, that is. "Falstaff." He spoke gently as Falstaff looked up and swiftly broke away from Ivy. "It's time to move. His highness wants everyone ready to go within the next two hours."

"Okay," Falstaff nodded seriously before Oreius moved along. Falstaff turned to look at me sadly. "Milady, I would like you to go with Ivy this morning. Learn whatever you can and whatever you can remember. You can't afford any mistakes when you're on the battlefield."

"Thanks for making me more nervous, Falstaff." I said uneasily looking down at my feet. I felt a warm hand on my shoulder.

"I know it's going to be hard, I'd be lying if I said that it wasn't. But we'll get through this. The Narnians are very resilient." Falstaff patted me on my shoulder. "I'll get your weapons and shields instead of one of the dwarves actually and give them to you soon. Don't worry." He trotted away as Ivy led me towards the first aid tent, staring glumly at the ground as she went. This was the first time that I had ever seen Ivy sad. Her earthy brown hair was hanging long and limp down her back.

"Right, the first thing you need to remember is that if someone is hurt with an implement stuck in the wound," Ivy mumbled quietly, her shoulders slumped over and her eyes growing pinker by the minute. "Don't take it out and tell them you love them..."

I frowned at Ivy in confusion. "Ivy, I don't think you taught me that. Are you – oh, don't cry, Ivy." I stopped her, turning to her and lifting her head. Glistening white tears were rolling down her cheeks and she was sniffling uncontrollably. I pulled her into a hug and let her cry on my shoulder. Ivy began to wail on my shoulder as I patted her on her back. "Ssh, Ivy its okay, we'll get through this. You heard Falstaff." Ivy began to cry louder on to my shoulder.

She spoke in a muffled voice in to my shoulder until she lifted her head. "I don't know what to do. We've grown u-up together and h-he's always been there f-for me." She dropped her head on my shoulder again.

"Well..." I didn't know what to say. What do you say in these types of situations? "Why don't you tell him how you feel? What've you got to lose?" I felt her shake her head on my shoulder. "Come on Ivy, I'm pretty sure he feels the same way."

She lifted her head and wiped her eyes like a toddler. "Y-you really think so?"

"Yeah, don't get all upset. Calm yourself down and just tell him." I said placing a hand on her shoulder.

"What about you?" she looked at me with wide eyes. I shrugged.

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me. I can remember most of what you told me about First Aid." She sniffled and wiped her nose.

"I'm going to do it," she said to herself, as if she was trying to convince herself than she can. "I'm going to tell him." I turn her around and nudged her in the direction that Falstaff went.

"You can do it. Now go after him before you miss him." Ivy hurried off as quickly as her legs would let her.

I began to wander around the campsite, not even noticing where I was going. It was like my legs were set on automatic and they were taking me wherever they wanted to go before I forced them to go to the battlefield once we were told. It just felt so surreal. I mean, here I am fourteen years old and about to go in to battle with my friends with no guarantee that we're going to make it out alive. There were so many things I wanted to do. I wanted to live and experience those happy times that Aslan had predicted I could have if I stayed here with the Pevensies. I wanted to grow up and die at an old age, peacefully by a warm fireplace. I wanted to have my first kiss. Funny, of all the things you could possible want to do in life and it's the little things that you miss the most.

The conch horn blew out a long mournful cry as everyone started to pack up and move out. _Time to put on a brave face Alexandra, _I heard my grandmother say in my mind. I won't tell you about my thoughts during the journey to the battlefield because, truthfully, I can't even remember them. Nor can I remember how or where my feet were taking me until I found myself on my way to the top of a cliff that overlooked Beruna. Tying my hair back in a tight bun at the back of my head, I walked briskly up the hill passing Narnians with either determined, calm or slightly fazed expressions on their faces. I suppose you had to admire their bravery. I wish I could have even an eighth of their courage.

I spotted Edmund pacing on the top of the cliff, fumbling with his arm guard. My stomach twisted with nervousness as I watched him drop the metal guard on the ground, cursing under his breath as he picked it up again. Biting my lip I approached him. I could hear him muttering as his fingers fumbled with the strings. "Stupid, bloody thing, why won't you stay on?"

"Here, let me." I said my voice quiet enough for just the both of us to hear. I took his arm in my hands and began to tug at the criss-crossed strings, tightening them until they stayed taught. I could feel Edmund's arm trembling in my hands. "Are you scared, Ed?"

"Yes," he breathed out, his legs shaking anxiously. "Are you?"

"Absolutely terrified." I looked up to see his round chocolate brown eyes staring at me. _Has his eyes always looked so beautiful?_ I mused. I looked away quickly as I felt a warm flush creeping up my cheeks. "But if the Narnians can do this, then so can we."

"Yeah, we can do this." Edmund nodded trying to sound confident despite the shake in his voice and the fact that he was still trembling. A silence fell between us as I tied the strings together. I gestured to his other arm to check that it was tied properly, before checking the rest of his armour. Edmund's hand brushed against mine and I halted, feeling a zap pass through my fingertips. My heart began to pound against my ribs despite the panicked screams in my head for it to stop beating so loudly. "Alexandra, I -"

"I'm sorry for making you keep my secret," I spoke in a hushed voice, glancing around to check that no one was around. "I know how hard it is for you to lie to your brother now...but I just wanted you to know that I appreciate it. A lot. More than you could ever know."

"I know, but let's not think about that now." Edmund said taking my hand and squeezing it gently. I shook my head.

"No, I have to say all this before something happens and we're both dead."

"Don't think that, please. I'm already nervous as it is." Edmund trembled. The sound of the warning horn echoed across the field as the White Witch's army, in all their thousands appeared on the horizon. We both stared at the horizon as a horrible nauseous feeling filled my stomach. "By Jove, this is bad."

"Do you think this is what our father's felt like when they were about to fight?" I asked suddenly remembering my father's round haggard face as I saw him off with Grandmother at the train station.

"I don't know." Edmund replied sadly.

A low bang of a bell sounded in the air, alerting everyone to get into their positions. High in the sky, a large feathery griffon swooped gracefully through the air until it landed on the front line. I turned back to Edmund feeling my eyes sting. "Permission to have a soppy moment?" Edmund nodded and pulled me into a tight hug. I inhaled his smell, engraving it in my mind before I pulled away. "I'd better go."

Edmund nodded staring at his fidgeting hands as I turned and walked away. My mind broke into a tormented frenzy, sending impulses in every direction around my body and ordering me to do different things. Only one impulse screamed louder than the others. Skidding to a halt, I turned around and ran back to Ed, only registering that he was staring at me in surprise before I rose up on to my toes and kissed him firmly on his forehead. As I fell back on my feet, I pulled him into another hug, screwing my eyes shut as tears threatened to fall down my cheeks. "Please don't die, Ed." I whispered in his ear. "I couldn't bear it if you did."

I felt his arms wrap around my waist tightly holding me against his trembling body. "I'll try not too."

"You're my best friend Edmund. If you died...I don't know what I'd do." I pulled away and laid my head against his chest. "I love you, you know that right?" I felt him tense in my arms and I wondered if I said something wrong. I felt his chin rest on my head as he hugged me tighter, as if he was afraid to let me go.

"Yeah," he mumbled back. I heard a cough from behind me and we suddenly sprang apart, as if we had just caught fire. I spun around to see Falstaff staring at us, dressed in full Narnian armour, holding out a chainmail shirt, a shield and some extra knives towards me.

"Milady," Falstaff nodded awkwardly as I took the chainmail shirt and slipped it on before taking the shield and knives.

"Thank you." I nodded back. "Good luck by the way."

"You too, both of you." Falstaff replied nodding to Edmund behind me as well. "Milady, it's time to go. Ivy's looking for you." His voice wavered a bit as he spoke but he recovered quickly. I wondered if Ivy managed to find him in time. I turned to Edmund and gave him a little wave before heading down the hill with Falstaff. I didn't look back.

By the time we found Ivy and the other dryads I was already kitted out with bandages and other various things that you needed for an emergency. Everyone around me was jumpy and anxious, waiting for Peter's signal. I looked towards the horizon. A flash of silver in the air. Everyone tensed, ready to spring into action. I gripped my Sais tightly in my sweaty hands. I could remember kissing Edmund on his forehead. I could remember Susan's and Lucy's happy smiles as we played by the river. I could remember the feeling of Peter's brotherly bear-hugs.

Another flash of silver created a terrifying roar. The crowd around me swept me along as we all ran towards our impending death. The battle of Beruna had begun.


	20. The Battle of Beruna

_Hello again!_

_Here is a biggie of a chapter for you! I am so happy that I've written this but it is a bit sad for everybody involved. I will warn you now, I almost very nearly cried with what I've written. Very, very nearly! There is a character death unfortunately. I know, very sad. _

_I am so happy with the lovely reviews you've all given me. They literally lighten up my day every time I see a new one. :) So, so incredibly happy. I can't wait to see if there are any new ones. Hello to any new reviewers! Hope you enjoy my story. _

_Anyone who reads my lovely friend Firefly12.12's story Worthy, keep a look out for a very familiar character that will be appearing in this chapter and later on in my story. :)_

_Um, I don't think there is anything more to say, enjoy! Please review!  
_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**The Battle of Beruna.**

In all my fourteen years of life I have never seen so much bloodshed and violence. We had been fighting for at least a couple of hours and already everywhere I ran, Narnians from both sides were being cut down with terrifying shrieks and screams. It was a slaughter. I hoped in my head that no one I knew personally had been killed already. A scream screeched somewhere to my left and I knew they needed my help. Darting left I dodged a huge burly Centaur with long silvery hair fighting viciously with a pig-faced ogre. I ran and ran, listening to the desperate screams as I dodged and leapt over fallen dead corpses and blood-stained rocks, until I turned a corner and saw a shaking faun lying on the floor, clutching his chest.

"Don't worry, don't worry." I gasped kneeling down beside the faun and grabbing a bandage from the first aid pouch around my waist. "Tell me what happened."

"Oh, thank Aslan you're here!" the faun cried happily. "I got stabbed by a black dwarf. I think he missed my lung but he hit something else. I'm not sure what though." I pressed my hand to his chest, feeling the sticky warm links of his chainmail and tried to feel what else had been damaged. What did Ivy say when trying to detect what's damaged? I couldn't remember. I just hope I can improvise really well.

"I think…" I said listening to the faun hiss in pain. I immediately felt guilty but I gritted my teeth and continued on. "It feels like the sword's shattered one of your ribs. You'll be fine for now but try and stay out of the fight." Tucking a stray hair behind my ear, I dived in to the first aid kit and pulled out a leather water pouch to clean the wound before finding some bandages to wrap around the fauns chest. His blood was already seeping through the touch linen layers. It was going to have to do for now. I could not afford to be thorough when there were other soldiers in trouble. Gathering up my things I ran on to find anyone else who was hurt. As I ran I kept an eye out for anyone I knew, whether it was Ivy, Falstaff, the Pevensie brothers, heck even Flora the camp cook. Climbing up on to a rough boulder I scanned the bloodied battlefield but I couldn't see anyone I knew. I really hoped they were okay.

Suddenly I felt a blow to my back and I was thrown forward on to the mossy ground. Blinking the yellow spots out of my eyes I rolled on to my back and raised my Sais in defence. Standing on the boulder above me was Peter locked in a fierce battle against a creature that looked like Medusa's ugly stepbrother, with huge tucks and spitting pythons lunging forward and snapping at Peter's sweating face. It was a Gorgon. I didn't even realise that gorgons existed in Narnia until now. This world was just full of surprises.

Scrambling to my feet I lunged toward the boulder, feeling a dizzying vertigo pounding against my head. I shook my head and looked up to see Peter staggering back towards the back of the rock before hastily finding his footing and shoved his shield against the gorgon, making it stumble backwards. The gorgon hissed and twisted around flicking his tail from underneath him and wrapping it around Peter's legs. With a tug of its tail, Peter fell against the floor with a crash. I hurried around the boulder and up on to the hill until I was behind the gorgon. What was the story of Medusa again? Perseus had to cut off Medusa's head to actually kill her.

I charged forward with one of my Sais raised in the air as the gorgon leaned forward to strike at Peter. My foot caught against a small ridge in the rock and I fell striking the gorgon in the small of its back. The gorgon jerked up and unleashed a snarl, his tusks bared and the snakes on his head hissing in pain. Peter raised his head in surprise, blinking as he saw me on the ground. "Pete! Cut off his head, now!" I shouted as the gorgon's tail flicked towards me, striking me in the side. I wasn't too hurt by it but it stung like I had a thousand hornets stinging the same place at the same time. Peter clutched Rhindon in his hand and swung it in a high arc striking against the gorgon's head, lopping it off like it was a balloon attached to a thin fraying string.

The Gorgon's body fell to the side like a bag of flour, loosening his tail around Peter and letting him go. Peter sat up his chest rising and falling rapidly as he stared in shock at the gorgon. Shaking his head he turned to me with a worried look in his eyes. "Are you alright? You're not hurt are you?" he asked scrambling over to me and helping me up.

"I think so. He stung me but the pain's going." I said frowning down at the purple cut on my leg. A small amount of blood trickled down my leg past my knee. I wiped away the blood and looked up at Peter, ignoring the cut. "Strange, I thought gorgons turned you to stone."

"Like the White Witch's wand?" Peter wondered as his eyes darted around us looking out for enemies. I had never seen him so on-edge. "Alexandra, have you seen Edmund at all?"

I shook my head. "No, I haven't seen him since the Phoenix blew up into flames. I was knocked over by an ogre then." My head pulsed from the memory that had happened less than an hour ago. A hundreds feet away from us a faun fell to the ground dead as a warthog leapt over him, charging and squealing after a red dwarf.

"I hope he's alright." Peter sighed, a worried look passing over his face before disappearing a second later.

"Edmund can look after himself." I said firmly wishing that I could stop the nagging feeling in the back of my head. I hadn't seen Edmund either since the start of the battle. Was he still alive? Was he hurt? I shook my head trying to rid my mind of those horrid thoughts.

"I know. It still doesn't stop me worrying though." Peter said starting to head down the hill towards another battle between an ogre and a cheetah. The cheetah seemed to have the upper hand before the ogre brought down his hand in a swooping arc, long ugly metal scythe in hand and slashing it across the cheetah's hind legs. The cheetah roared in pain as it tumbled to the floor. Peter ran towards the ogre, cutting the creature down where he stood. I hurriedly ran towards the cheetah in hope that I could help him. As I reached him, a red haired dryad appeared by the cheetah and kneeled down, cleaning up the blood from the mewling cat's legs.

"Don't worry, I've got this." the Dryad spoke, throwing away the bloody cloth in her hand and begun wrapping a bandage around the cheetah's legs. "My Empress taught me how to do this when I was only a few decades old." I stared at her for a few seconds before standing up and heading off towards the battle. Everywhere I looked was bloody with destruction. Blood spilt across the field like little rivers. How could anyone look at all this and not be alright at the end of it? Is this what my father experienced or is experiencing during the war? Is this worse than the war in Britain?

The sound of hurried hooves drummed against the ground behind me followed by an earth-shattering war cry. I spun around to see Falstaff charging through a huge crowd of the White Witch's army, cutting down Narnians left, right and centre, a determined look stuck on his face as he ran. He looked terrifying. I felt scared of him as tremors shook through my body. From the training he had given me I had thought that he would be like this in battle, all harsh brutality and calculated precision. Not one enemy could harm him or even place a scratch on his gleaming silver armour. If this is what he was like fighting, I'm glad I never fought against him in training. I would've been cut down dead within a minute. But that didn't stop the blood of his enemies splattering on his face.

"Milady," Falstaff panted, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand as he neared me lunging forward in front of me and stabbing a creature so ugly and horrifying I couldn't even dare to describe it in fear of it being inscribed in my mind. It fell with a flump on the ground twitching and snarling until it let out a sigh of pain and falling limp, dead. "Don't get distracted, what have I been telling you?"

"I-I'm sorry," I breathed out, suddenly realising that I was trembling.

"You need to get somewhere away from the brunt of the battle. You're going to get killed if you're not careful." Falstaff said firmly, grasping my arm tightly. "Quick, climb on my back and I'll get you out of here."

"What?"

"Hurry milady." Falstaff pulled me up behind his waist and on to the back of the horse part of him. I had never ridden a horse so it felt strange and unnatural to be sat on an animal. I wrapped my arms around Falstaff's waist and held on tightly as Falstaff galloped towards a crevice of boulders. Falstaff was heading towards a high archway made up of rock and crumbling dirt. On top of the archway, a dwarf was aiming at soldiers on the ground. He spotted us and aimed his arrow, pulling the string back.

"Falstaff look out!" I shouted as the dwarf let go of the string, the arrow shooting through the air and striking Falstaff in the shoulder. With a yell, Falstaff reared throwing me off him and stumbled, falling to the ground in pain. As soon as my back hit the ground, my sight exploded in little black spots like a spatter of paint on clean white paper. My attention followed the swirling black spots as the led me on a wild goose chase, round and around and around until I heard a chilling voice in my head.

_Alexandra…Alexandra…wake up my beauty…please wake up…_

I didn't want to wake up. I wanted this all to end. I wasn't going to trust this traitorous voice even if my life depended on it. The voice was gruff and hoarse with sadness but familiar all the same, like some old forgotten nursery tune out of a music box or an old photo that should be in a locket but wasn't.

Suddenly, Edmund's face appeared in my mind. His skin was sickly pale like he had just come straight from the White Witch's cell, so white and blue. Cuts and bruises painted his skin as he stared up at me, his eyes wide and full of sorrow. His lips parted as I leaned close begging to know what he was going to say. A moment passed and his eyes flickered shut, a sigh escaping his lips as he fell limp in my arms. _No! __Don__'__t __go __please, __wake __up! _I thought as the world began to spin. I felt nauseous. A dull booming sound drummed against my ears as I slowly opened my eyes to see the bright blue sky, becoming darker as tremendous black rainclouds strolled across the sky. Rolling over on to my stomach I threw up bile mixed with blood, groaning in pain as my head pounded with a new fury. Reaching up I felt the back of my head, my hair loose and sticky with a warm liquid. I pulled my hand away and gasped as I saw my fingers tainted with crimson blood. Groggily sitting up, I looked around for the reason why I was on the floor. A few feet away from me, a centaur was lying on the floor clutching his shoulder as he neighed in anger and pain. "Falstaff!" I shouted as I dragged myself over to him, my limbs screaming in protest as I went. "Falstaff, are you alright? Falstaff?"

"Milady, leave me. I'll be okay, you need to get somewhere safe." He groaned. I ignored him and pressed down on his shoulder, hoping to stop the flow of blood to the wound.

"But you're hurt Falstaff, I can't just leave you here to bleed to death." I retorted pressing down harder on his shoulder. He yelped and grabbed my wrist tightly.

"Please just go! I cover you until you're out of sight but you need to get somewhere safe. You need to go now." He pushed my hand away and nudged me off of him. I batted his hand away and pulled a cloth from my pack.

"I can't leave you like this. Ivy would never forgive me if I did." I said through my clenched jaw.

"Why would she never forgive you?" I glanced up at him as he frowned at me through the pain. _Did __he __seriously __not __know?_ I thought incredulously. I shook my head and sighed.

"She's in love with you! How could you not notice?" I rolled my eyes as Falstaff went silent, staring up at me as if I had just whacked him in the face. I threw away the cloth and pulled out a bandage wrapping it around his shoulder, careful that I didn't move the arrow. Ivy had told me not to take out the object impaled in the wound or else it will make it worse. If only I had Lucy's Fire flower potion.

"I...I didn't realise. She never told me." Falstaff spoke a look of pure shock on his face.

"Well now you know." I shuffled around him, tightening the bandage. I screamed as an arrow hit the ground where my hand would have been if I hadn't moved it in time. Falstaff glanced up at the archway to see the dwarf notch another arrow.

"Get out of the way!" Falstaff shouted pushing me away as he pulled a knife from the body of a fallen Talking bear. I scrambled to my feet and ran as fast as I could underneath the arch as Falstaff threw the knife in his hand towards the dwarf. The dwarf yelled in pain as the knife struck home. I turned around to see Falstaff lying on the floor, panting heavily and sweating. I was tempted to go back and help him but what would be the point of him protecting me if I just ran back in to the open. I had to find someone to look after him. Just to make sure he stays alive for all our sakes, not just for Ivy.

I hurried around trying to see if anyone else needed help but they were all caught up in fights. There was so much blood. Turning a corner I saw Peter fighting another creature from the White Witch's army. His opponent was huge, at least seven foot and a mix between a man and a psycho chicken. Swords clashed, feathers were spat everywhere, shrill shrieks and gurgles screamed into the air. I started to head towards him when suddenly something heavy collided with me, sending me sprawling on to the floor. A snarling growl ripped through the creature as its claws dug in to my back. I grabbed one of my Sais and swung it back in to the creatures side, knocking it off of me. It let out a yelp and I used the time to roll on to my back. A huge black wolf snarled at me, teeth bared and snapping. I froze.

_It__'__s __just __a __wolf, __it__'__s __just __a __wolf, __hit __it __before __it __hits __you!_ Grandmother's voice snapped at me, but all I could see was the wolf's big black eyes, and blood stained teeth. The wolf snapped its jaw at me, getting impatient and lunged at me, its mouth closing around my left arm. The pain was excruciating, like my arm had been trapped and crushed underneath a pile of rough rocks. I dropped my blade as the wolf pulled and tug my arm, wanting to tear it off. I screamed in pain, wishing for it to stop, but it wouldn't. I grabbed the knife with my other hand, gripping it tightly in my sweaty and sticky hand and plunged it in to the side of the wolf just at the point where the leg met the body. The wolf squealed letting go of my arm before it limped away, leaving me on my own, wounded and in pain. This was starting to really get frustrating. Why was I always the one to get hurt? Not once all the way through this battle had I killed anyone, yet I have more battle wounds than I have strands of hair.

Cradling my wounded arm to my chest, I shakily got to my feet. But I suddenly wished I didn't. The White Witch was standing a few feet away, her back facing me as she stared at something before her. A sword swung around towards her waist, hoping to cut her in half but with a flick of her wrist she deflected it with her wand. Round and round it went until suddenly there was a smash. A flash of white-blue light lit up the field, bringing everything to a standstill for a moment. Someone had smashed her wand. Someone had broken her wand! The witch stepped to the side and let out a scream of rage at her opponent. I froze as I saw a flash of brown hair sticking out underneath his oversized helmet. It was Edmund.

In that moment I had never felt so proud of Edmund, not even when he had appeared at Aslan's Camp saying that he was sorry, or even when he had won a spelling test at primary school when we were six. But here he was and he had broken the White Witch's wand. Why didn't any of us think of that? It was pure genius! Yet, despite my moment of happiness for Edmund, it had all shattered when the White Witch plunged her broken wand into Edmund stomach.

It felt as though my whole world had frozen still and the sky had suddenly dropped on my shoulders. My heart thudded in my ears as if it was trying to prove that I was still alive. A lump coiled in my chest, like a kettle bubbling and steaming. It was fighting its way up my throat, clawing at my vocal chords some kind of tortured monster until it reached my mouth. I let out a scream as my legs pushed forward like the tears falling down my cheeks, watching as the White Witch turned away and left Edmund to die. I reached Edmund just as he fell backwards clutching his wound. I lowered him gently down to the ground crying and kneeling down next to him. "Edmund, why did you do that? What were you thinking?"

"Had...to...stop her." He panted, groaning in pain and clutching his stomach. Blood was oozing out beneath his leather armour, staining his shirt and the grass red. He was going to die unless I did something _now_. I rummaged in my first aid bag and paled. It was empty. I had no more provisions or equipment. _Alright, __calm __down, __just i__mpromise._ I told myself as I gripped one of my Sais and tore a strip of cloth from my dress. I glanced at Edmund's face to see his eyes fluttering, struggling to stay awake.

"Oh, no you don't. Edmund wake up! Wake up or so help me, I'll -" His eyes widened as Edmund forced them open, looking up at me with a grimace of pain. I felt his hand feebly grip hold of my skirt, the cloth becoming dirty with the sweat and grime from his hand. He was shaking so badly. I remembered the image of Edmund dying in my arms and a shiver went down my spine. Did I see Edmund's death before it happened? _No, __Edmund __can__'__t __die, __he __just __can__'__t! _I thought as I cut the leather armour away on Edmund, exposing the deep red welt in his stomach. "You've got to hang on alright Edmund. You can't die, I won't let you." I felt Edmund's hand tighten around my skirt. I gathered the cloth in my hand before pressing it hard in to the wound hoping to stop the flow of blood. Edmund groaned in pain. "Sorry, I'm so sorry Ed, but I have to do this."

"Alex..." Edmund mumbled but I shook my head.

"Edmund don't talk, save your strength." I said firmly.

"Alexandra," he managed to say, turning his head to face me. His face was getting paler. I pressed harder in to his stomach listening as Edmund yelped. "Alex, please listen to me!" I shook my head. I knew where this was going. I knew what he was going to say. You see it all the time in all of the popular books back home. He was saying his goodbyes. "Alexandra, look at...me. Please." He gasped. I reluctantly turned my head to him, tears falling down my face. He smiled a little even though he as still in pain and it showed through. "If I don't get through this, that's _if_ Alexandra, I want you to look after the others. Tell them...I'm sorry for...everything."

"Shut up, don't say your goodbyes." I scolded him pressing harder into his stomach and turning away from him. "I'm not going to let you die."

"I never told Mum how sorry I was." Edmund croaked, his chest rising and falling quickly. I looked back at his face to see him staring up at the sky. "I love my family...and I never told them."

"They already know." I mumbled wiping away my tears and lifting Edmund into my arms. "They already know you love them Ed." His breathing was becoming slower, his head resting against my shoulder. He was growing weaker by the minute and I just couldn't find the strength to carry on. He was dying. It was no use. I might as well just comfort him as he slipped away.

"Did you mean...what you said earlier?" Edmund whispered his eyes closing slowly.

"What did I say?" I whispered back feeling another tear fall down my cheek. I didn't even register the battle around me anymore. What was the point in all this? Edmund was dying. The Witch got what she wanted didn't she? "Ed, what did I say?" I looked down at his face to see his eyes shut and his head lying limply back, exposing his neck. "Edmund..?" I shook him but his eyes remained shut. "Edmund no, please you can't go yet." My voice shook as I placed my hand on his chest trying to feel for a heartbeat. I couldn't find one. "Please don't go..."

The sky darkened above as rainclouds covered the bright blue of the Narnian sky. I rested my head on top of Edmund's and rocked him back and forth feeling my tears coming down but not even bothering to wipe them away. "Edmund please wake up, I'll do anything you want if you just wake up." He remained silent and lifeless. I shook him again watching his head loll from side to side. "Please don't leave us Ed, we need you." _I __need __you,_ I thought tearfully. "D-do you remember when Lucy lost her comfort blanket? She'd lost it and couldn't sleep for three nights, especially through the thunder storm, but you found it for her, do you remember? I-it was behind the display cabinet in the living room." I took off his helmet and stroked his damp dark hair out of his eyes. He didn't move. "Please don't die. I don't want you to die. You're my best friend. Sometimes I feel like you're really my only friend. You don't keep secrets from me, do you?" I looked down at his face, looking so peaceful and angelic as he slept. "Of course you wouldn't, you've never lied to me once. You just tell it as it is. That's why I like you, you know. Well, one of the reasons."

I felt a splash of water on my face as it began to rain. Glancing up around us I saw that there were only a few fights left but they were so caught up in their fury they didn't notice us. We were invisible. I held on tighter to Edmund. "If there is no hope of you waking up, and I really hope you do, you'd better come back and haunt me," Despite how upset I felt, I couldn't stop the chuckle that left my mouth. "Cause if not, I am so not going to forgive you."

Suddenly, a huge ferocious roar filled the air sending everyone to a standstill. I gasped in shock. There was only one person I knew that could roar like that. But that's impossible. I saw his death. The White Witch stabbed him. I saw it all. _Maybe __he __wasn__'__t __really __dead. __Maybe __he __was __just __tricking __her __into __thinking __so. _But if Aslan had found a way to survive death then maybe Edmund could survive too. "Edmund please wake up! You've got to wake up please! Ed wake up!" I started to shout at him, shaking him desperately but still his eye refused to open.

I heard a thunder of footsteps getting louder and I saw Peter, Susan and Lucy running towards us, terrified looks on their faces as they saw Edmund lying limp in my arms. "What happened?" Susan demanded collapsing down next to me, touching the side of Edmund's head.

"The White Witch stabbed him. He's dead. Wait, where is she?" I glanced around us looking for the evil woman who killed Edmund, but she was no where in sight.

"Aslan killed her, she's gone." Lucy replied with a smile pulling out her bottle of fire flower potion. She poured a drop into Edmund's mouth and we watch anxiously in hope that he would wake up. A moment passed and he was still lifeless. It was too late. Edmund was dead. He wasn't coming back. I let him go, feeling cold and hollow inside. Susan laid him back on to her lap and stroked his hair affectionately as we all began to well up in tears. What was it going to be like now that Edmund was gone? There was just going to be this huge empty void filling the place where Edmund was supposed to be. I stared back at Edmund's face, still unable to believe that he was dead.

Suddenly I heard a noise. It was quiet enough that the others didn't hear it, quiet like a mouse giving a cough. I gazed at Edmund's still pink mouth. Did I just imagine the noise? Was I really going crazy? Another quiet gasp broke from Edmund's mouth followed by a pathetic cough. I stared in shock as Edmund's chocolate brown eyes fluttered open staring up at us all with a confused frown. "Why are you all crying?" Susan and Lucy gasped in surprise as Edmund was roughly bundled into Peter's arms, hugging him tightly as he sniffled tearfully on his shoulder. I couldn't believe it, Edmund was...alive. But he was dead, I couldn't feel his heartbeat. He was dead...

As they broke away, Peter wiped away a tear and sternly looked at Edmund. "When are you ever going to do as you're told?" They both grinned boyishly at each other as Susan and Lucy pulled him into a hug, ruffling his hair and pecking his cheeks before they let him go. Edmund turned to me with a huge grin on his face.

_Smack! _

"Ow! Alexandra, what was that for –ow! Stop it! Ah! Stop hitting me woman!" Edmund yelped as I slapped him in the face, in the stomach, arms, chest and every place I could reach.

"Don't you _ever_ make me cry over you again Edmund _bloody_ Pevensie! Do you hear me? _Never __ever __again!__" _I shouted at him as a bucket-full of tears slipped down my cheeks before I pulled him into a rough hug, sobbing on to his shoulder with relief.

"Hello again to you too Alexandra," Edmund chuckled as he wrapped his arms around me and patted me on the shoulder in an attempt to calm my tears. Soon, both Edmund and I were enveloped in a group hug from the rest of the Pevensies.

"By the mane, I hate you Edmund." I mumbled as I poked him playfully in the stomach. I felt him winced and I cringed in guilt as I remembered his wound and hastily rubbed his stomach better as an apology.

"Don't worry, I know you do." Edmund smiled and tightened him arm around my shoulder. The others broke away from us letting both Edmund and I to pull away too. As I began to calm down from all of the drama of Edmund's death and then non-death, all of the pain from my injuries began to ooze through my shield and pound and poke me until I couldn't ignore it anymore. I looked down at my arm and hissed as I saw the amount of blood flowing out of my wolf bite. Tingles prickled in the end of my fingertips and I began to feel dizzy as I could hear my heartbeat pounding in my ears.

"I don't feel so good," I moaned slumping against Edmund's shoulder, shaking my head to try and get rid of the dizziness. Edmund turned his head towards me and tutted.

"Well of course you wouldn't. You're bleeding everywhere." He sighed gently taking my arm and gingerly began wiping the sticky blood away. I groaned and Peter shook his head in disbelief.

"Honestly, Alexandra. What is it with you and bleeding to death?" he joked playfully, turning to Lucy, who uncapped her bottle. I would've poked my tongue out at Peter but I couldn't find the strength at this precise moment. Lucy tipped a drop in to my mouth and I felt the familiar sensation of the potion coursing through my veins until I felt stronger. But despite how much better I felt physically, I felt frustrated.

"I swear most of that potion has been used on me." I grumbled, sitting back on my feet.

"But if we didn't use it you'd be long dead." Lucy spoke popping the cap back on the bottle. It felt like the matter was final. There was just no more point in arguing. Edmund squeezed my hand gently, rubbing my knuckles with his thumb. I felt content and happy with his hand around mine but I wasn't entirely sure why. Edmund and I were just friends, nothing more. A cough made by someone nearby was what made us look up.

Aslan was standing majestically looking at us all with a warm smile on his furry face. His golden brown fur looked as bright as the sun both soft like a warm cotton blanket. I wanted to hug him and kiss him so much, ecstatic that he was alive but I was nervous to do so. I mean he wasn't a tame lion after all. You can never really tell what will happen if you just give a lion a cuddle. He could take your head off if he wanted to. Aslan walked forward, head up and mane shining, until he was stood beside a stone statue of a frozen Narnian. He blew gently on the statue, the warm air tickling my face as we all stared at the statue in awe as it started to unfreeze. It was a miracle. The Narnian gasped leaning forward on to his knees, filling his lungs with fresh, delicious air. Lucy stood up shuffled around us and grabbed my arm. I looked up at her in confusion, a huge smile on her face. "Come on Alexandra, get up."

"What?"

"You're a medic aren't you? Come on, get up!" she smiled pulling me to my feet and tugging me along after her, not even giving me a chance to say goodbye to the others. As we walked she told me that we had to help everyone who was hurt. I suddenly remembered about Falstaff. Was he alright? Was he still alive? Letting go of Lucy's hand I hurried towards where I had reluctantly left Falstaff, keeping my fingers crossed that he was still alive. Running underneath the archway I found the area empty. Where was Falstaff? I had to search for him. I had to make sure he was alright. There was a trail of blood from where Falstaff had been before and I immediately followed it, leading me past dozens of soldiers being tended to by dryads and other medics until it finished at the edge of the rock boundary.

"Oh no..." I whispered to myself at the sight before me. Falstaff was knelt down rocking back and forth, cradling a body in his arms. _Please __not __Ivy, __please __not __Ivy._ I thought as I slowly walked towards them. A hand caught my arm and I spun around to see Ivy shaking her head. "Ivy, you're alright. What's wrong?" I blurted pulling Ivy into a hug. She didn't reply and remained still, looking on at Falstaff with sad, teary grass-green eyes. "Ivy, who is that? Who's died?" I looked up at her to see her mouth mumbling soundless words. "Sorry, I didn't catch that."

"It's Oreius. He's dead...he was like a father to him." She whispered with a sniffle. "Falstaff's on his own now. He's an orphan."

"He's not on his own though." I spoke taking Ivy's arm and pulling her along. "He's got us." I couldn't help but feel like a mother hen. I wanted to comfort Falstaff and tell him that it would be alright. But I knew he wouldn't listen to me. Or at least not fully I hope. But he'll listen to Ivy. That I knew would be true. Ivy knelt down beside Falstaff and I knelt down on the other side of him, hesitantly touching his arm. Falstaff straightened up wiping his eyes and letting out a shaky sigh. "Are you alright Falstaff?"

"Yes milady," he replied his eyes welling up with tears once more. "I'm perfectly okay, it's just another death. Nothing I haven't seen before." Ivy shook her head and pulled him into a half-hug, letting him rest his head against her shoulder. Looking down at Oreius, I whispered my goodbyes to him and gently closed his eyes, letting him sleep peacefully for the rest of eternity.


	21. The Coronation of the Pevensies

Hello everybody!

Here is the next chapter for you all, it took me kind of ages to write but then again it's up now so it doesn't matter. This is the last chapter before we skip a few years and yes this is a super long chapter for you (14 pages). Hope you all like it.

Oh and Merry Christmas! Unless you're reading this from Australia then happy summer holidays! (I hope I'm right.) Thank you all for reviewing the last chapter I am so happy it's like christmas everyday. Welcome to my story **Liza Cobbler, lordsteinman, Zee.24 **and **Calyn. **I hope you call continue to read and review my story.

Well, enjoy! :)

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**The Coronation of the Pevensies.**

_Goodness, __I __look __awful._ I thought as I peered over Ivy's shoulder, staring at a mirror on the other side of the First Aid tent. The girl in my reflection stared back at me, her face covered in dirt, blood and grime. Her bottom lip was cut and swollen adding to the incredible amount of bruises and other cuts scattered all over her face. There wasn't even one inch of skin that wasn't red or black. My usually long, wavy, dark hair was now falling lank and matted with blood in front of my face, plastered against my skin and my neck. Ivy dabbed a wet cloth gently against the side of my face, gentle and silent. She was probably thinking about Falstaff, worrying about him.

"He'll be alright you know," I said looking at her as she jumped as if out of a trance. She gulped and tucked a lock of earthy brown hair behind her ear. She looked a lot better than I did, with only a few cuts and grazes on her face. She nodded and pressed the cloth against my head.

"I know he will be, eventually." She replied in a flat voice. She stared down at me as her mouth twitched as if it wanted to smile so badly but couldn't remember how. "Are you alright?"

I nodded, wincing slightly as my head pounded. The fire flower potion had worked its magic on my injuries but there were still a few grazes and cuts that needed to be cleaned just in case there was any infection. My body ached from the battle right from my head down to my toes. It was literally like I was the captain of a crew that had declared mutiny. I couldn't win and I knew that later on when everyone settled down for the night, I was going to suffer.

The tent flap opened and Peter's head popped in with a smile. "Ah, here you are. We're all getting ready to pack up and leave camp. We need to get travelling as soon as possible if we're to reach Cair Paravel by nightfall."

"Okay Pete, we'll be along in a minute." I smiled back as Peter nodded and left. I turned back to Ivy curiously. "What is Cair Paravel? I never found out."

"It's the castle of the four thrones just on the shore of the eastern ocean." She replied turning away and packing up her things. "It's where you're going to be living for the rest of your life."

"And you," I smiled at her. She turned back with a confused expression on her face. "What, you think I would have wanted nothing to do with you now that the battle was over? Falstaff's coming too."

"Oh, really? It's just I've never been in a palace before. In fact this is the farthest I've been away from my tree." She said surprised. "I should really go back to the Dancing Lawn to check on it." I nodded remembering what Ivy had once told me about Dryads. According to what she said, Dryads were tree spirits whose life force is the tree they had grown from. It gets all very complicated from there but in reality that is the gist of it all.

"Sure you can, but you'll come to Cair Paravel right?" I asked, a frown appearing on my face as I looked at her. Ivy bit her lip in thought before smiling at me.

"Maybe not permanently, but I'll see if I can work something out." I grinned at her happily before standing up. The tent around me swirled for a minute before it settled still. I was still a bit dizzy from losing so much blood but I was coping well, according to Ivy, despite the circumstances.

Everyone in the camp had begun to pack up their things and take down the tents by the time that I exited the First Aid tent. Glancing around I watched as Narnians from all ages and species went about their business, some of them speaking with relatives and friends, others just plodding along wiping their eyes when they thought no one was looking. Nearly everyone had lost at least one person close to them during this bloody war, but at least they are in a better place now.

Not much else exciting happened that morning as we packed and travelled across the country towards the shore. Some of the children who had returned with their mothers were once again playing and laughing, cheering everyone up as they went. It was such a nice thing to watch. "Hey!" Lucy called from behind me running to catch up to me as everyone walked. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, sure I am." I replied with a smile walking beside her. "I'm really excited though. I mean, what's it going to be like to live in a castle?"

"I know. It's going to be brilliant!" Lucy gushed. "I've always wanted to be a princess. I can't wait until we get there, there's going to be a beautiful ball and ceremony and we're going to have lots and lots of beautiful dresses..." She trailed off smiling to herself with glee as she indulged in her fantasy of being a princess like she always wanted. She was a ten year old girl and she had just helped heal hundreds of soldiers after a bloodthirsty war, she was allowed to act her age if she wanted too. I wish I could. After everything that has happened I don't think I could even remember what I was like before the war happened.

"Oh my goodness! Can you see that?" Lucy exclaimed suddenly pointing ahead of her where we were headed. I followed her gaze and gasped in surprise at the sight before me. A large beautiful white castle sat on top of a cliff overlooking the ocean and the long white strip of sand. It was the most magnificent palace I had ever seen. It was the only palace I had seen apart from pictures of Olympus in my _Greek __Myths_ book. _We __were __going __to __live __there_, I thought as my gaze fell on the beautiful marble white turrets and magnificent red and gold flags flapping casually in the wind.

"It's beautiful…" I breathed out as we headed closer and closer to it, watching with wide eyes as it grew bigger and bigger in front of us. This was the place where I would live for the rest of my life with the Pevensies. It seemed as if this was a dream or some kind of fairytale. We were going to be living like royalty with the Narnian people as our subjects ruling wisely over this oppressed land for the rest of our lives…

I gulped nervously and stared after Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. We were just children and the Pevensies were going to rule over a country with no experience beforehand. What if we made a mistake and started a war with someone else who was even worse than the White Witch?

"So what do you think, Alexandra?" Lucy asked suddenly causing me to blink in surprise.

"Sorry?" I replied sheepishly feeling my cheeks warm with embarrassment. Lucy huffed and gave me a look that reminded me of Susan's 'Mrs Pevensie' look.

"I said do you think that we'll get to have rooms next to each other?" Her eyes were shining hopefully at me as I gaped at her.

"Um...sure, you get to choose whatever room you want. Can't have an unhappy ten-year-old ruler now can we?" I grinned back at her as she beamed with excitement.

"I'm going to tell Mr Tumnus – wait! You haven't met him yet, have you? Oh, you simply must!" she grabbed hold of my hand and proceeded to drag me along after her. I waved at the others as we passed, watching as bemused looks appeared on their faces. Edmund rolled his eyes with a smile before turning back to Peter to continue their chat.

Lucy pulled me along until we were nearly at the front of the procession before she tugged my arm in a near hairpin turn as she soon spotted who she was looking for. "Mr Tumnus! Mr Tumnus, there you are. I have someone I would like you to meet."

Before me stood a cheerful looking faun wearing a warm red woolly scarf around his neck and not much else. He grinned happily at Lucy as he waved back, a strange "Y" shaped object in his hand. He had curly brown hair on the top of his head that matched his furry goat legs, as well as a small amount of a fuzzy beard around his jaw. His nose was big and round like that of a goat and his eyes reminded me of hazelnuts. On the top of his head, hidden within his curly hair was a pair of ivory-grey horns that curled around to little points on his head. "Lucy! What a pleasure to see you!"

Lucy looked close to bouncing up and down with happiness as she nudged me forward. "Mr Tumnus this is Alexandra. She's my friend I've been telling you about."

"Oh so you're the Daughter of Charn I've been hearing about. I'm glad to finally meet you." He smiled at me before wrapping me in a hug. I blinked in surprise as I hesitantly hugged back. _Am __I __actually __hugging __a __goat-man?_ I thought incredulously before another thought entered my mind. _Wait...I__'__m __the __what? _I decided to smile at the faun as he pulled away despite being so confused.

"Sorry, what did you say I was?" I asked with a frown.

"A Daughter of Charn, don't worry I don't have anything against you. Any friend of Lucy is a friend of mine." He smiled warmly. This was the first time that any of the Narnians had been nice to me straight away. It felt kind of...touching for a change. I returned the smile watching as Mr Tumnus began to play on the "Y" object in his hand. It was some kind of two-handled reed pipe that played a beautiful upbeat melody as Narnians all around us began to sing a song of a woman named Helen who was the most beautiful in all the lands but was also very humble.

It was sunset by the time we reached Cair Paravel. The Pevensies were staring up at the castle in shock as we were all lead in by Mr and Mrs Beaver. Mr Beaver was leaning slightly on Mrs Beaver as they lead the way. He hadn't done as well in the Battle as most Narnians did but he was a lot better than I was. As we entered through the gates to the palace, the sunset behind us cast an almost golden light around our shadowed silhouettes. The wide white marble entrance way looked like gold as we quietly walked in, struck with awe by the sheer size of everything. Huge crimson red tapestries adorned high on the walls; there were guards wearing suits of armour like the ones in Professor Kirke's home standing at alert along the walls in the castle. Female fauns and dryads were curtseying to us as we walked past them smiling politely before they went on their way. It seemed as if they were preparing a party of some sort as decorations and huge silver platters of food were carried hurriedly in every direction I could see.

Standing in front of us in the middle of the hallway was a middle aged red-haired dwarf was shouting orders at all of the servants and guards. "Hurry everybody! No Marion that pig goes in the _other_ feast hall. Festus, have you organised the entertainment – Festus put that down! That is a _priceless _suit of armour and I will have your head if there is even a smudge on it! Chop, chop! Their highnesses will be here any moment!"

"Your grace, such an honour to finally be in your presence!" cried an elderly faun flinging a huge basket of laundry in to the air in surprise as he spotted us. I blinked in surprise as suddenly everyone came to a skidding halt and hastily scrambled into a bow or a curtsey. I stole a glance at the others and saw that they were just as surprised as I was. Peter's face was red with embarrassment and Susan was shifting form one foot to the other. Lucy however was beaming widely at them all as they all straightened up. I looked around for Edmund only to find him standing slightly behind me. I raised my eyebrow and tipped my head towards the panicky servants. Edmund replied with a shrug.

Aslan, who had been quiet during the journey, stepped forward and looked at the red haired dwarf as he straightened up and knelt down on one knee. "Your greatness Aslan, to what do we owe the pleasure?" he spoke to the floor, peering under his eyelashes to see Aslan.

"Tillius, if it is not too much to ask, could you and some of the servants show our Royal family and guests their accommodations?" Aslan asked politely. The dwarf jumped up nodding his head vigorously.

"Of course, of course! Let's see...ah, Marion, Fabian, you can come along with us and fix up the rooms for their royal families." Commanded the dwarf clapping his hands together as two of the servants put down the items in their hands and began to lead us further in to the palace. They lead us up a grand staircase that led us to a section of the castle that was somewhat separate from everywhere else.

"And this...is the private chambers for your royal highnesses." Tillius the Dwarf spoke with a flourish of his arms. The Pevensies almost immediately began to rush over to the rooms they wanted, leaving me in the dust. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I turned to see Ivy smiling slightly at me.

"Come with me. I've found a room that I think you might like." I followed her as Ivy led me back the way we came, just a few doors down from where the other's rooms were. The door in front of me was an old dusty oak door, the wood varnish peeling off at the edges and the brass door handle was grubby with dirty, dusty fingerprints. I raised an eyebrow at Ivy thinking in my mind whether she knew me at all. As a reply, Ivy smiled and gave the door a slight shove.

The door creaked open into a darkened room. The smell of dust and old age was ripe in the room, making my nose itch and crinkle as I felt a sneeze coming along. A sliver of golden sunlight filtered in from in far in front of me and Ivy headed towards it. She pulled open the dusty curtains sending an almost heavenly light in to brighten everything up. I gasped.

A gorgeous four poster bed occupied the space of the room, long flowing drapes decorating the top and the four posts. White linen and grey silk pillows lay on the bed waiting to be slept in. My eyes stared around the room surveying the wardrobe, dressing table, rocking chair and fireplace. I began to feel sad looking at all of the poor empty furniture, covered in dust and just waiting to be used. My eyes stopped on a work table in the corner beside the window. Books upon books surrounded by rolls of parchment littered the surface. I found my feet leading me towards it and my hands ghosting over the items. A wooden cupboard hovered on the wall above the desk. Hesitantly, I teased the door open afraid that the door would break off. Inside the cupboard were rows and rows of bottles of all shapes and sizes, some filled with liquid and some empty with the labels peeling off.

"So what do you think?" Ivy asked with a happy sigh, her hands placed on her hips and twirling around. I nodded with a smile.

"I love this room. This is perfect." I dragged my finger along the bottom of the cupboard and lifted it up. "Could do with a clean though."

"I agree. According to some of the servants, this used to be the ward's old room."

"What ward?" I frowned.

"The ward of Queen Swanwhite," Ivy answered as she began to explore the room, opening up the wardrobe and peering inside it. There were a number of moth eaten dresses hanging inside it. "Yes, apparently she was a little strange. She always had terrible nightmares."

I froze and stared at Ivy as a shiver ran up my spine. _She __had __what?_ I thought in fear. "W-what?"

"I know. Strange isn't it?" Ivy said flippantly. Was there someone else like me years before the White Witch came? Were they still alive? What was her name..? I paused as I looked around the room. Something about it made me feel sad but at the same time I didn't want to leave. Could it be..? I didn't want to think it was true. I shook my head.

"Oh well," I sighed stretching out my limbs and shaking them out. "I think I would like a nice meal, a hot bath and an early night. What do you think?"

"That's a very good idea, Milady." Ivy smiled as she exited the room to run me a bath. Casting one last look around the room I flopped back on my bed with a smile on my face. I was certainly going to love this room.

* * *

"And...there!" Ivy smiled as she finished pinning my hair back into an elegant knot at the back of my head. "Oh, you look so beautiful Alexandra."

I blushed as I watched Ivy smile at me in the mirror. Tonight was the Pevensies coronation and everyone was getting ready for the ball. No one had been allowed out of their rooms in case we interrupted the preparations by the servants. But to be honest, I didn't mind. It was good to have some alone time to just relax.

There was a knock on the door to my new clean chambers.

"Come in," I called. The door opened and I looked up at my mirror to see Edmund staring back. I spun around to see Edmund standing sheepishly by the doorway.

"Are you ready to go?" Edmund asked politely with a smile.

"Yes, one moment." I replied as I picked up my mother's necklace and gently gave it to Ivy to claps around my neck. "There, I'm ready." I stood up from my perch at my dressing table and turned to Edmund with a smile.

Edmund offered out his arm for me to take in a grandeur gesture, a wide smirk painted clear on his mouth. "My Lady," he spoke as he bowed down so low I thought he was going to fall over. I couldn't help but let out a giggle and roll my eyes at him. He straightened up and puffed out his chest in a haughty manner. "Might I have the pleasure of escorting you to the ball?"

"You've been copying Peter again haven't you?"

Edmund let out a loud bark of laughter as he nodded his head. "Yes, but he was a lot funnier." Ivy shook her head with a small chuckle.

"Shame on you two, you shouldn't jest about your brother like that." Ivy tutted despite her smile was still there on her face.

"You'll see what I mean when it comes to the ball after the ceremony." Edmund sighed as he calmed himself down. "Shall we head down then?"

"Yes. Ivy, are you coming down?" I asked turning my head to Ivy with a smile.

Ivy nodded. "Yes, I'll be along in a minute I just have to talk to Falstaff about something first." She headed out of the door with a quick curtsey. I turned to Edmund who was staring and smiling widely at me.

"Shall we go then?" I said picking up the skirt of my dress. Edmund nodded and waited on the other side of the door to my chambers. We headed down to the hall chatting and laughing along the way. We even threw a few playful punches in the arm as we went. We were almost at the door to the throne room when I felt a shiver run down my spine.

Edmund noticed that I had halted to a stop. "Alexandra?"

"I could have sworn I've been here before." I whispered as I stared at the grand marble corridor that seemed to shine like gold. The doorway to the throne room seem to be three times as big as I thought it would be guarded by statuesque fauns in silver Narnian armour. There were two tapestries with an emblazoned gold lion on red cloth on either side of the doorway. I must have been here before, everything looks so familiar. I wonder if there was a woman with long blonde hair dressed in a sky blue dress. I would love to meet her.

"That's impossible. We've never been here before." Edmund muttered next to me. Suddenly I felt him tense and turn his head to me. "You don't think it could be anything to do with your -"

"Ssh!" I said hastily as I spotted Peter, Susan and Lucy coming our way dressed in all their new royal finery. "Be quiet." I pleaded silently with Edmund to stay quiet just until an appropriate time. He nodded and spoke no more about it. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned to see Mr Tumnus gestured for me to follow him. I understood what he meant straight away. It was time to let the Pevensies get ready. I said goodbye to the others and headed over to Mr Tumnus. This was certainly going to be a spectacular event.

* * *

"Well, well, well, don't you look Kingly," I chuckled as Edmund blushed in embarrassment from underneath his silver crown sitting on top of his dark hair. It was just after the ceremony and the ball was in full swing. There was laughter and merriment, dancing and music and even a few rubbish jokes that seemed incredibly funny. Peter was dancing (well, I'd better say stumbling to form a better picture of what he was doing) with a young girl who I suspected was a dryad. Susan was talking with Ivy and another dryad named Laurel who had been injured during the battle whilst healing a fellow dryad. And Lucy finally, was having a wonderful time dancing and laughing with Mr and Mrs Beaver as well as Mr Tumnus and Flora the camp chef.

"Honestly Edmund, the crown suits you." I smiled at him as we headed over to the banquet table along the side of the throne room that was somehow hidden from view by all of the Narnians attending.

"Thanks, I was really nervous earlier." He sighed in relief as we picked up a plate each and began to pile food on top of it. Well, I tried to. There really wasn't much to eat for vegetarians except from fruit and salad.

"Well, you didn't look nervous. You were a natural." I said as we came upon the sweet part of the banquet table. I was hoping to get a bit more food on my plate than just a piece of celery, an apple and a bunch of grapes.

"Hmm, I wish I could say the same for Peter's dancing." Edmund chuckled as he watched his brother step forward into a move and his dryad partner fell forward on to her face. I giggled in to my hand as my plate shook in my other. An apple fell from my plate back on to the table and rolled over to a plate of rose coloured sweets dusted with icing sugar.

Our laughs fell silent as our view fell on to a plate full of Turkish delight. I glanced at Edmund from the corner of my eye to see his face pale white and staring blankly at the sweets. Edmund had quietly told me last night when everyone else had gone to bed that he had betrayed us all because he wanted some Turkish delight. It took ages to calm him down enough to go back to bed early in the morning.

"Um, Edmund I don't suppose you could get me a glass of wine could you?" I asked politely hoping he wouldn't become guilty about betraying us again. I definitely didn't want to go down that road again. Edmund nodded and swiftly walked away without looking back at the plate. As quickly as I could I put down my plate of fruit and picked up the Turkish delight plate hoping to get rid of it before anyone saw. I decided to hide it under one of the plant pots on the balcony. I shivered as I stepped out onto the balcony. It was dark and the only light came out from the party inside. I hurriedly hid the plate behind a small tree that seemed to be growing bright white blossoms even though it had to be close to midnight.

"Alexandra, it is a pleasure to see you again." A voice spoke from behind me. I jumped and almost let out a scream when I saw Aslan smiling a whiskery grin back at me. I sighed in relief.

"Aslan, you scared me then, where did you come from?" I asked looking around him and wondering whether he had appeared out of thin air.

"It doesn't matter. How are you enjoying the celebrations?" he asked swiftly changing the subject. His tail was swishing playfully behind him as he watched the party.

"It's so much fun, but…" I began to speak. I didn't even realise I had spoken until I found Aslan looking at me expecting me to go on. I sighed. "Is this it then? Is this where my prophecy starts?"

Aslan pursed his furry lips with a thoughtful look on his face. "In a way, yes this is where your prophecy starts. But not yet."

"What does that mean? Is it going to happen soon? Am I going to have to wait?" I asked. I wanted to know what was going to happen. I _needed_ to know what was going to happen. Aslan flicked his tail against my shoulder in a playful shove and I knew I had to calm down.

"Do not worry about the future. Come back to the present and enjoy the party. Besides I think Edmund would like to dance with you." Aslan chuckled with a feline smile. I blinked in surprise and spun around to see Edmund standing by the balcony door.

"Alexandra? Who were you talking to?" Edmund asked curiously with a frown on his face. I turned my head to see the balcony empty. Where did Aslan go?

"Aslan just disappeared. I don't know. I'm not even going to try and find out where he's gone." I shook my head feeling slightly tired. Only slightly, though. I spotted a goblet of wine in Edmund's hand and I decided to take it, taking a sip. "Do you want to dance Edmund?"

"Um…Okay." Edmund mumbled as I took his hand, placing my goblet on the banquet table before standing in the middle of the hall. "I will warn you I don't know how to dance."

"Who cares? I don't know either. Just go with it. We can't be any worse than Peter." I chuckled taking Edmund's hand and placing it on my waist and putting my hand on his shoulder. Edmund was blushing and looking down at his feet as we began to move. The music in the hall was a slow melodic tune like a lullaby. There were other couples on the floor as well. Peter was still dancing with his dryad partner, Mr Tumnus was dancing with Susan and Lucy and I also spotted Ivy awkwardly dancing with Falstaff, despite the splint in Falstaff's left hind leg.

"You look really pretty tonight by the way." I heard Edmund murmur to me. I turned my head away from Falstaff and Ivy to see Edmund smiling shyly at me. I smiled back at him taking a quick glance down at my dress. Ivy had managed to find an old dress for me to wear for the ball until she could contact the royal seamstresses in the morning. It was a dark blue dress that looked as if it had come from medieval England. There was a tight blue corset and a long flowing skirt as well as long sleeves that ended just above my hands. It was a little big but it would do for tonight.

"Thank you." I murmured back blushing slightly at the compliment. "You scrub up as well yourself."

"Hey!" Edmund chuckled with a playful shove in the shoulder.

"Alright, alright I'm sorry." I grinned. We were still slowly rotating round in a circle but it seemed as if we were in our own little bubble world. This was probably the happiest I've ever been before in my life. Aslan was right. It was time to enjoy myself in the present. With that we danced and danced for the rest of the night, laughing and joking along the way.

* * *

I woke up this morning somehow in my own bed even though I had no memory of getting here. My room was a mess though. There were clothes all over the floor, party decorations from the hall scattered amongst my bottles of medicine in the cupboard and pieces of paper and books all over the floor. What ever I did last night I was not organised about it. Usually I was very neat and tidy and I was very proud that my room and belongings were always tidy and in their places but looking around at my room now almost seemed as if there was a storm.

There was a knock at the door and Ivy came in carrying a yellow-brown bottle in her hand. It looked like another bottle of cod liver oil and I felt my throat tense and tighten in protest. Ivy stared around at my room in surprise before she tutted and unscrewing the cap on the bottle. "Oh dear, you definitely had fun last night didn't you?"

"How are you not tired?" I yawned as I sat up in my bed. I had a mild headache and very sore limbs, in particular my legs from dancing all night.

"I went to bed at a suitable time Alexandra. Now come on take this and drink a spoonful." Ivy said pouring out a clear liquid in the bottle in to a round tablespoon.

I eyed the liquid warily. "What is it?"

"Just drink it. It'll taste like swamp water but its better than feeling horrible all day." Ivy moved the spoon closer to my mouth. I sighed and thought it was better to just get it over with. I opened my mouth and closed my eyes, feeling my stomach clench horribly as the spoon entered my mouth. Ivy was right, it tasted positively foul. I had to bit on my tongue to stop the urge to throw it up.

I managed it in the end with a shudder and already I could feel the effects of it through my body. I felt wide awake and ready to start the day. There was another knock at the door as I began to tidy up my room. "Come in!" I hurried over to my bedpost and slipped on my dressing gown, fixing it tightly around my waist.

The door opened to reveal Edmund, still in his pyjamas and dressing gown and slippers. "Good morning. Oh hello, Ivy,"

"Good morning, your majesty. Come here and take a drink of this. It'll make you feel better this morning." Ivy bustled over to Edmund pouring another spoonful of the foul liquid.

"Run Edmund, it tastes horrible. It's even worse than cod liver oil." I exclaimed to which he stared back at me in confusion.

"Oh hush Alexandra and tidy your room." Ivy chided back as she gave Edmund the spoonful. Edmund's face screwed up in disgust before he eventually swallowed it.

"Bleugh! That tastes absolutely disgusting." Edmund exclaimed with a shudder.

"Told you," I muttered as I picked up a pile of books and placed them on my desk. Ivy shot me a look over her shoulder before I quickly apologised.

"I'll leave you both to talk. I'd better find the other highnesses and wake them up." Ivy sighed as she exited my room and left us alone. Edmund sat down on the edge of my bed and watched me as I tidied up.

"You know, you could lend a hand to help instead of just sitting there." I called over my shoulder as I picked up some bottles. Edmund remained silent. "Well, come on Ed. Speak up." I turned around to see Edmund staring at me. "What is it?"

Edmund took a deep breath and spoke six words I was dreading to hear. "It's time to tell the others."

I froze and dropped everything in my hands on the floor, a clatter of tinkles and clangs on the wooden floorboards. I knew this day was coming but I didn't want it to come so soon. "What?"

He pursed his lips at me and pointed a finger at me, standing up and walking towards me. "You said we could tell the others as soon as the war was over."

"Not this soon!" I protested turning away from him and kneeling down, tidying up all of the things I had dropped. I heard Edmund growl in frustration behind me.

"Alexandra, you promised -"

"I didn't promise anything." I snapped over my shoulder.

"Yes you did. When I was dying, you promised you'd do anything for me." Edmund spoke. I paused in fear as I realised what I'd done. Of course he would have been listening but he was dying... I sighed closing my eyes as I slowly stood up. I heard Edmund's feet tap lightly across the wooden floor towards me and then felt his warm lightly-calloused hand wrapped around my hand. "I'm asking for you to tell the others about your dreams. And you can't go back on your promise now."

"But you were dying... I didn't think you would last long." I mumbled quietly, looking down at my feet. Edmund walked around me until he was stood staring in front of me.

"So that promise was a lie was it?" I could feel the hurt in his voice and I felt terrible about it. I shook my head.

"No, I'd never lie to you. Or at least I really try not to lie to you. And I mean _really._ I just thought I wouldn't have to complete it." I couldn't look him in the eye without feeling ashamed. I felt like the lowest scum of Narnia and England all rolled together with an extra layer of liar to wrap it up.

"Well, at least you're honest about it." he sighed. I glanced up to see him looking away from me. He still held my hand though, whether or not he realised it, I didn't want him to let go just yet. "Can I ask you something?" I nodded. He turned his head back to mine and looked down at our intertwined hands. "When we were saying our goodbyes on the hill," I felt my heart race as I figured out where this was heading. "You told me you loved me. What did you mean by that?"

I studied his face, trying to figure out what he was thinking but he kept his face schooled blank and empty of any emotion that might betray what he was feeling. This is one of the things about Edmund that frustrates me. He bottles up his emotions and never reveals anything unless he wants to. "I meant I love you like a friend." I whispered shakily, wondering in my mind why I was whispering. "You're my best friend and that's all." Edmund nodded and let go of my hand feeling a hollow feeling inside.

"Very well, if you love me like you say you do, then you'd tell the others for me."

"You sneaky cad," I spat, glaring at him and fighting the urge to slap him in the face. "I don't want to tell them, I can't tell them and you know why."

"You still think we don't want to be your friends and call you crazy?"

"Yes, even more so now than before. Don't you remember all those soldiers in the hospitals back home? They were crazy too!"

"That's different. You have unusual dreams -"

"And they don't?"

"Stop trying to change the subject!" Edmund snapped. I flinched staring at Edmund with wide eyes. He dropped his head, touching the bridge of his nose as he sighed. "I know you're scared, but trust me when I say that you have _nothing_ to worry about. What do I have to do to make you believe that?"

"I don't know, but please don't make me do this." I begged. I watched in despair as Edmund shook his head.

"No can do. We have to tell others. It's not healthy to keep a secret like this, especially one this big."

"But why now? Why not later on?"

"We're you're family now and families don't keep secrets from each other."

"But what if something went wrong? What if they do think I'm crazy? You can't know these things." I turned my back on him and began to pace again. "What if they start worrying about me again? I hated that you were all doing that before the battle. Susan's already said that I'm not normal and it doesn't help that they all keep talking about me behind my back -"

Suddenly I felt Edmund grab my forearms, spinning my around and keeping me still. "Alexandra, listen to what you're bloody saying! Can't you see what I'm trying to make you understand? Keeping a secret like this...it's making you paranoid. This isn't you. What happened to the happy little girl who lived next door to us? What happened to the Alex who'd stuff cats with Turkish delight with me or the Alex who would do anything to have fun?"

I began to tremble as I remembered what I used to be like before the war. There was a time where Edmund and I were camping in the Pevensies back garden when I was seven. Mr Pevensie always kept an eye on us from the kitchen window but he didn't need to worry. We were only talking in our sleeping bags with extra woolly blankets and warm cotton socks.

"_Do you think that we'll be friends when we go to secondary school?" Edmund mumbled turning his head to look at me. I was falling asleep but I was desperate to stay awake a little longer. _

"_Of course we will. Nothing can break up our friendship. Not even the apocalypse." I replied confidently with a grin. I rolled over on to my stomach to turn on the torch that Edmund had sneaked out from Mr and Mrs Pevensie's bedroom. As the torch burst to light up the tent, Edmund squinted in the brightness. His midnight black hair was mussed up from rolling back and forth in anxiety. _

"_But what if something does happen? Like, what if we make new friends and never speak to each other ever again?" Edmund sighed rolling on to side and leaning up on his elbow. _

"_That will never happen. You'd have to shoot me if it did." Edmund shook his head looking down at his fingers that were fidgeting. _

"_I-I can't do that." I noticed his cheeks were growing pinker by the minute. Was he cold? He had enough blankets. _

"_Well, I certainly could. I'd be mad to not be friends with you." I smiled to myself not noticing the look of horror on Edmund's face. "Besides we live next door to each other. You could always pop over when you start to miss me."_

"_Who says I'll miss you, you silly girl?" Edmund stuck his chin out and smirked cheekily. I gave him a playful shove sending him flying on to his back. "Hey!" _

"_Watch this." I smiled as I picked up the torch laying it down on a pillow at an angle until it shone on the canvas wall of the tent. Shuffling forward so that I was in front of the light but not completely eclipsing the light on the wall, I linked my fingers together until a shape appeared on the wall. "Look, I've made a butterfly."_

_Edmund chuckled and sat up linking his fingers together. "I've made a dog and he loves eating butterflies." Edmund moved his little finger up and down to move the dog's mouth, playfully snapping at my butterfly. I pouted at him and twisted my fingers until I made a different shape._

"_You bad dog!" I mocked as the shadow of a farmer's head appeared on the wall, hat and all. "Get in your bed!" The dog poked out his tongue. I laughed and laughed until my belly ached, Edmund leaping over and tickling me to continue my laugh. _

Susan and Mr Pevensie had found us in the morning lying and sleeping peacefully close to each other, clutching the still lit torch to my chest and my thumb hanging out of my mouth. Edmund's head was lying in the crook of my neck with his arm wrapped around my waist as if I were a teddy bear. I entertained the idea of being that girl again but in the end I shook my head.

"But that was before the war and all of the nightmares." I spoke, my voice growing hoarse from all of the strain of emotions coursing through me. "That girl I used to be...I don't think I can be her anymore."

"You are her though, you always have been. I mean just look at last night, at the party." I felt Edmund tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear before he froze and pulled his hand away. "These dreams are just another side to you. We can overcome them."

"But what if there's no way to get rid of them?"

"Well, then it doesn't matter." He replied firmly looking at me in the eye. "Please?"

I tried to look away from him, tried to shrink away from the look he gave me as he tried to get me to agree. But I couldn't. I couldn't look away from his eyes. They were just so brown. I shook my head and sighed. "You're right...I was just being silly." I spoke laying my head on his chest and hugging him around his waist. I tilted my head up so that I was looking up at his face. "If I go along with you, would you tell them?" Edmund nodded his head as I held him close.

"Of course I will. If that's what you want." He said rubbing my back gently to calm me down.

"And you promise they all won't hate me?" I mumbled into his chest.

"Why would we hate you?" Edmund began to pull away and I desperately wanted to keep him close. But I knew it wouldn't happen. I let him go and shrugged my shoulders as a reply. "Come on, let's go tell them." Edmund took my arm and led me out of my chambers as I tried to calm the nervous butterflies in my stomach. We were going to tell them. The others were going to know about my dreams. I felt Edmund's hand slip down into my own and gently rub his thumb in soothing circles. I began to calm down. Everything was going to be alright. Edmund was going to tell them and they won't hate me. Edmund had said he'd help me didn't he? He said he'd help me with anything and he was right, we were family. Families don't keep secrets from each other. I suddenly thought of Susan and Lucy's conversation about my dad behind my back.

Well, I hope they don't keep secrets.


	22. Five Years Later

_Hello!_

_Here is another chapter for you as a sort of late christmas/early new year's present. Thank you everyone for reviewing the last chapter. Just so you know I am so going to mess with your minds from now on! Mwa ha ha! There is one huge answer in regards to Alexandra's mother. I hope you all like this chapter and I also hope you review and tell me your thoughts. I'm hopefully going to try and get the next chapter up as soon as possible. Hope you all had a merry christmas and I'll wish you all a happy new year!_

_Enjoy!  
_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart **

**Five Years Later**

I felt the warm sunrays from the open balcony window on my skin as I groggily woke up from my sleep. My bed sheets felt fresh and warm against my body. I had never slept so well in all of my time in Narnia. Opening my eyes I stretched out my limbs listening to the cracks that my joints screeched out in pleasure. I reached up to my collarbone and touched my pendant, feeling it cool against my hot skin. I smiled happily for no reason at all except that I wasn't tired.

Suddenly I felt a hand creep over my waist, brushing against my stomach and pulling me back against a firm hot wall pressed up against my back. I choked on a gasp of surprise as I suddenly realised two shocking things. One, someone was in my bed kissing my neck and enveloping my hand in theirs. And two, I wasn't wearing any clothes.

I tensed as I heard a chuckle next to my ear. "Good morning, my darling wife." I gasped in horror as I hurriedly rolled over, my eyes rising to meet the warm dark eyes of Edmund grinning at me.

"Alexandra, wake up!"

I woke with a jolt as the dream faded away into nothing. My eyes were still half-closed and my reading glasses askew on my nose to see a sniggering young man with shaggy dark hair and chocolate brown eyes, shaking his head at me. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Edmund, why did you do that? I was only resting my eyes." I grumbled straightening my glasses and listening to the cracks in my back as I slowly sat up. Edmund rolled his eyes and perched himself on the corner of my desk, peering down at the title of the book lying open before me.

"_An Advanced Anatomy of the Common Faun,"_ Edmund read slowly with a peculiar frown on his brow. "Well, no wonder you were asleep."

"I was not asleep." I said indignantly as Edmund raised an eyebrow at me. "Besides, I have to read this. Ivy's testing me on Fauns tomorrow."

"Alexandra, you're tired. Take some time off and come outside with me. We can go sit in the gardens."

"I really need to get this done, Edmund." I shook my head turning back to the open book in front of me. "Maybe later or tomorrow after Ivy's tested me." The book snapped shut as Edmund leant against the table beside me, shaking his head at me.

"No, come on it'll be fun. No I insist this time Alexandra, how are you going to study when you're just falling asleep all the time?" Edmund said sternly grasping my arm and pulling me up out of my seat before he started to drag me towards the library door. I pulled against him trying to reach back and pick up my book.

"Edmund wait, I just need to -"

"Alexandra it will still be there afterwards. Now come on before I order you." He replied tugging me out of the door and down the corridor away from the library. I sighed and went along with him. He was just too strong to escape from and I…well, I will regretfully admit I am a little tired. I hadn't been sleeping too well. There was a storm coming soon and I couldn't get to sleep because of it. There was just something in the air.

"Why couldn't you have sent Lucy or Susan to drag me out? They're less rough." I pouted as Edmund looped his arm around mine walking as if it was the most casual thing to do.

"But then I wouldn't have been the one to wake you up, and your face was a cracker just then." Edmund replied with a wide cheeky grin on his face. "Besides you've been cooped up in that library ever since you found it five years ago. You're looking a bit pale." I gave him a withering look. "Well, paler than normal."

"There's just no winning with you, is there?" I sighed as we stepped out of the castle and in to the western courtyard which had been turned into the castle's gardens. There were beautiful apple trees arching up high into the sky providing cool dark shade on a hot summer's day. There were rows upon rows of flowers ranging from buttercups, roses, tulips, lilies and my personal favourites bluebells. It was like walking into the Garden of Eden.

Edmund shook his head as we walked with a smile still painted on his face. We had all grown up over the past five years we had been in Narnia and living in Cair Paravel. Peter had grown up into a tall, strong, broad-shouldered young man with hard jaw line that was starting to grow wisps of a beard. Susan had become the most beautiful maiden in all the lands, her beauty almost rivalling that of Queen Helen, the first queen of Narnia. At least that's what Mr Tumnus says who had grown slightly older (as Fauns always do look fairly young) and was now starting to grow grey hairs in his hair and in his shaggy fur legs. Lucy however, was still growing and was getting very tall for a fifteen year old teenager with long auburn hair that ended at her waist and often had flowers woven in around the top of her head whenever she wasn't wearing her crown. She still has her little tea parties with Mr and Mrs Beaver and Mr Tumnus in her room.

Edmund had turned twenty years old just two weeks ago and I was nearing my own twentieth birthday within the next few days. Edmund had grown taller over the years with broad shoulders but a lean body with a hard jaw and the brownest eyes I've ever seen on a man.

"How are the statues coming along?" I asked to which I heard Edmund groan and roll his eyes. I smirked at him biting on my tongue to stop the giggle that was trying to escape from my mouth.

"Oh don't get me started on that. Tillius may be a talented artist but he sure does get on my nerves." Edmund replied. For the past few days the Pevensies had been taken to have their statues sculpted so that they could be remembered in stone forever. I wasn't to have one sculpted because I wasn't a queen or of royal blood. I was just the Court Physician. Well, the Court Physician in training. "Just be glad you don't have to stay still for hours on end just so that Tillius could sculpt an eyebrow."

"Oh I am glad, believe me." I laughed as Edmund gave me a playful shove. "Speaking of things that get on our nerves, has Susan actually decided on who she's going to marry yet?" Edmund narrowed his eyes at nothing in particular and pursed his lips in annoyance. "I'll take that as a no."

"It is a choice between Duke Thomas of Archenland, Count Odinius of Galma or it is Prince Rabadash of Calormen." Edmund sighed counting each of the names on his fingers. "I just wish my sister would just decide already instead of dallying about."

"You can't just rush a decision when it comes to the matters of the heart Edmund. What if you picked an ass of a man to marry without thinking it through? You'd be stuck with him forever."

"Well I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be looking for a man to marry." Edmund chuckled staring at me with a bemused smile. I shoved him in the shoulder.

"You know what I mean." I replied as we came to a small grassy area with a large woollen blanket laid on the ground with a hamper basket placed in the middle. "Goodness Edmund, someone would think you'd planned this little outing."

"I did nothing of the sort Alexandra. I have no idea where this blanket and basket of food came from." Edmund replied mockingly, rolling his eyes at me as we both sat down on the blanket.

"Oh, ha, ha," I replied sarcastically. Edmund started to take out a plate of what looked like jam sandwiches followed by orange juice and two chocolate muffins that were still warm from the oven.

"Dig in." Edmund smiled before tucking in to a jam sandwich. I chuckled and picked up a jam sandwich and took a bite out of it. The jam inside was from Flora's mouth-watering blackcurrant and cherry jam. Apparently the recipe had been in her family for at least seven generations and she had finally perfected it by putting cherries in to the recipe. Soon when we were full on food and drink, we tidied up and put everything back in to the hamper basket before lying back on the blanket side-by-side, staring up at the fluffy white clouds in the sky.

"Oh look Edmund, don't you think that one looks like Mr Beaver? Do you remember the Christmas faire down at the market place?" I asked as I pointed at a cloud up above.

"Oh yes, that was a jolly good day wasn't it? Lucy was so funny." Edmund grinned back. It was a bright but chilly winter's morning and Lucy had dressed with as many of her scarves as she could fit around her neck, resulting in her tripping over one of the many long trails and knocking Mr Beaver into a sack of flour. I laughed at the memory feeling warm inside as my head lay against Edmund's chest, feeling his heart beat underneath my ear. He felt so warm and it made me feel even sleepier. I didn't want to go to sleep yet though.

"Edmund don't you think that this world feels like a dream and in a minute we're going to wake up and suddenly we'll be back in the Professor's house?" I asked pensively turning my head up to look at his face. I watched as Edmund tipped his head to the side thoughtfully before shrugging his shoulders.

"I suppose so." He replied with a shrug. I felt Edmund wrap his arm around my waist, pulling me closer in to him. "Do you remember our tree-house in the forest? I had a dream about it last night."

"Of course I remember it." I replied smiling as I pictured a slightly run down wooden house with a fraying rope ladder high in the tree tops in the woods behind the park. We were nine years old when we found it and it was the only place that Edmund and I could escape to when things got a little overwhelming at the Pevensies. "Your mother was absolutely livid when we missed dinner."

"I wonder what she's doing now." Edmund wondered to himself quietly. "Do you think they've noticed we've been missing in England for five years?"

"I don't know. Maybe the war still isn't over." I sighed. We couldn't know anything for sure about what was happening in England. We only had our hopes. I yawned quietly into my hand and laid my head on Edmund's shoulder, wrapping my arm across his stomach. He was just so warm. It was like hugging a life-size hot water bottle.

"Oh look, Alexandra, there's a cloud that looks like you." Edmund murmured to me pointing up in to the sky. I turned my head to see but I felt my eyes slip close sending me off in to a slumber I didn't even realise I was having. I didn't dream of anything in particular or of anything at all for that matter. I just stared at the pitch blackness of my mind. "Alexandra...Wake up its nearly dark."

I felt a nudge on my shoulder as I groggily woke up. The sky was dark up above and I found myself nearly sleeping on top of Edmund. With a blush of embarrassment I rolled away from him. We were still lying on the ground outside in the gardens. "W-what are we still doing here?" I felt a drop of rain splash on my cheekbone. "Edmund it's starting to rain."

"I know. That's why I'm waking you up." Edmund replied standing up and offering his hand out to me to help me up. "We'd better get inside quick. The owls told us this morning that there's a thunderstorm coming tonight."

Collecting up the blanket and the hamper basket we hurried inside just before it started to bucket down with rain. "That was close." I spoke looking out at the raindrops pummelling into the dirt. A thought came into my mind and I rounded on Edmund. "Oh no! What am I going to do? I've got that stupid test tomorrow and I haven't revised for it. How could you let me fall asleep?"

"I didn't realise you were asleep. Besides you need a day off. You're going to make yourself sick." Edmund sighed as he started to walk. I followed him.

"I don't need a day off. I'm perfectly well. I'm just a little tired, that's all." I said taking the bundled blanket from Edmund just to give me something to carry. Edmund frowned and turned to me.

"Why are you so tired? I thought you weren't having any nightmares." I shrugged back as a reply. It was true. I hadn't been having any nightmares since the day we both told the others about my dreams. It was a welcome relief. I could remember the day as if it was yesterday.

"_Are you sure we can't just tell them later?" I asked timidly, wondering how much time I'd have to make it back to my chambers and lock the door before Edmund caught me. _

"_Alexandra, we've been over this and to be honest I'm getting sick and tired of it." Edmund spoke irritably. I felt a bit guilty then as Edmund pushed the doors open to the council room. It was a wide room with a huge round table in the middle of the room. Peter was pacing back and forth in behind his seat whereas Susan, Lucy, Mr Tumnus and Ivy were sat in various seats around the table. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Falstaff standing with most of his weight on a walking staff as he lifted his hind hoof into the air. Earlier that morning Ivy had taken the splint off of his leg, warning him not to put too much weight on the leg until it had fully healed. Falstaff had flat out refused to take any of Lucy's Fire-flower potion saying that there were worse injuries than just a broken leg. _

"_Why is everyone else here? You said just to tell Peter, Susan and Lucy!" I hissed at Edmund as I tried to make my way out of the chamber. Edmund quickly grabbed my shoulders from behind and pushed me forward. _

"_They're all part of the council. They need to know too." Edmund said reasonably into my ear. _

"_You sneaky, horrible, lying little -"_

"_Alexandra? Edmund, what is going on?" Peter asked as suddenly everyone's eyes were on us. Obviously everyone had spotted us come in. "Why did you call us here?"_

_Edmund sat me down firmly in a seat, keeping his hands firmly on my shoulders to stop me from running. I was trapped. There was nowhere to escape from everyone's curious eyes. Why the hell did I agree to this? Why did I even tell Edmund? I heard the doors close shut and suddenly I felt as if I was going to suffocate. Were they going to judge me? Were they all going to hate me? Would they throw me out and never speak to me again?_

"_Alexandra has something important to tell you." Edmund announced as he sat down in a seat next to me. _Thank you so much Edmund, I really appreciate it._ I thought bitterly to my self. I stared down at my hands and remained silent; ignoring the stares I wasn't getting off everyone in the room. I heard Edmund sigh in annoyance. "Fine, I'll tell them."_

"_Tell us what Ed?" Susan asked with a frown as Peter sat down in his seat. I heard the soft clip-clopping sound of Falstaff's hooves on the floor as he made his way slowly over to us. _

"_Alexandra's been having dreams."_

"_Everyone has dreams Ed, that's nothing unusual." Peter scoffed rolling his eyes and resting his chin on his hands. Edmund shook his head and stood up._

"_I meant Alexandra keeps having nightmares. Really weird nightmares," I glanced up through my eyelashes at everyone to see their reactions. Most of them were confused, but Falstaff and Mr Tumnus had curious, interested looks on their faces. "Pete, do you remember when Alexandra came over to our tent claiming that Aslan was dead?"_

"_How would she know? She wasn't with us when we saw it happen." Lucy spoke up in a serious voice._

"_Exactly Lu, she couldn't have known unless she dreamt of it." _

"_But that's impossible, how can you dream of something that was already happening?" Susan asked as Peter nodded in agreement. I almost nodded my head in agreement as well. How was that possible? _

_Mr Tumnus suddenly coughed quietly to clear his throat and get our attention. "Lady Alexandra, have you had any other dreams like these before?"_

_I reluctantly nodded my head. "I um...I've dreamt of my mother before. She was walking through this gate and...There was another one about Professor Kirke's tree at the bottom of his garden." I spoke quietly. Mr Tumnus nodded to himself. _

"_Tell us what you're thinking Mr Tumnus." Lucy said looking at him. _

"_Well, according to the history of the Narnian monarchy, Queen Swanwhite was the only monarch to date to have a ward who had nightmares." Mr Tumnus began as he looked at me and tipped his head to the side. "It's just curious to notice the comparisons between you and Queen Swanwhite's ward."_

"_What was her name?" I asked curiously. I couldn't help but feel a connection between myself and this ward, whoever she was. _

"_Her name was Lady Indina." Ivy answered suddenly. I stared at Ivy in shock. _That's impossible, that's just impossible..._I thought feeling my body trembling lightly. _

"_But...Indina is the name of my mother." I heard myself whisper. Ivy nodded and glanced down at the table. _

"_I'm afraid, milady, Tumnus is right. The comparisons are very striking." Ivy spoke staring down at her hands. Falstaff frowned, placing a comforting hand on Ivy's shoulder. Everyone in the room fell silent staring at either Ivy or me in curiosity. There was one question that was whirling round and round my head. _

"_What did she do?" I asked in a deep breath. "What did she do to betray the Narnians?"_

_I felt like everything was closing in on me, suffocating me slowly as the silence grew. No one spoke for what seemed like a millennia. Ivy remained still until she took a deep breath and spoke._

"_She joined the Witch's side and murdered Queen Swanwhite."_

I shook my head to clear my head of the horrible memory. I had fainted there in the room when I had discovered the news of what my mother had done. I just couldn't comprehend that she could be my mother. She had betrayed the Queen. She was her ward! A trusted guest of the royal family! How could she?

"Alexandra, are you alright? You've blanked out again." Edmund asked with a frown. I shook my head once more to clear my thoughts.

"Sorry, my mind's somewhere else." I sighed pressing my hand against my forehead. "I think I'm getting a headache." I watched as Edmund offered a smile and tucked a lock of hair behind my ear.

"Should I tell the others you're missing dinner?" he asked gently, taking my hand and stroked my knuckles with his thumb. He had really coarse hands from all of the training Falstaff has been teaching him over the years. I nodded and kissed his cheek before walking past him towards my chambers. I paused halfway down the corridor and turned around to face Edmund.

"Thanks for the afternoon Edmund." I called as Edmund smiled back at me, his hand fidgeting with the butt of his sword strapped at the side of his waist. "It was fun."

"My pleasure," he replied. "Get some sleep and I'll speak with Ivy tomorrow to let you have a day off."

"Goodnight Edmund."

* * *

_I was stuck in a damp, dark cell,_ _shivering and crying. I was alone. I was terrified of being here. I couldn't even remember ever getting here. Where were the Pevensies? Where was Ivy? There wasn't even a window to tell me the time of day. The only indication of how long I was here in the horrid place was the dirty dishes in the corner of the cell and the dull ache of my wrists that were strung up against the grimy stone wall against my back. I hurt all over my body. Every limb was screaming in agony as tears and blood trickled down my cheeks. All I knew was that the next time the cell door opened I was going to get hurt. _Edmund, where are you?_ I thought desperately when suddenly I heard footsteps clomping down the hall. They were coming to hurt me. Desperately I yanked at the chains that held me up. The sound of the metal links twinkling against the stone. I whimpered in fear as a sob escaped my mouth._

_The cell door opened with a clang as a tall shadowed figure stepped into the doorway. I screamed in terror as he advanced raising his hand in the air bringing it down hard against my face. I felt the striking sting against my cheek just as a clap of thunder echoed in the dark._

I screamed as I sat up in bed, covering my ears against the torrent of thunder outside my window. I could feel the hot burning sting on my cheek as if I had just been slapped by that horrible man. A flash of lightning lit up my chambers and out of the corner of my eye there was a dark silhouette. With a gasp I scrambled out of bed running out of my chambers and down the corridor, not even stopping to light a candle or slip on my dressing gown over my nightclothes. I opened the first door I found and slammed it shut behind me, shaking terribly as hot tears slipped down my cheeks.

Another flash of lightning lit up the room followed by a huge crash of thunder. I covered my ears and hurried towards the bed in the middle of the room. I shakily picked up a match from the bedside table and stuck it, lighting the half-melted candle on the table. I lifted the candle to see who was in the bed. The glow of the candle fell upon a figure with dark hair sleeping face down on the many pillows at the top of the bed.

"Edmund, Edmund wake up!" I hissed kneeling down on the edge of his bed and shaking his shoulder. I heard him grown into his pillow and turned his head away from me. "Wake up please."

Another clap of thunder echoed outside the window. I whimpered and shook Edmund harder. Edmund grumbled and lifted his head turning to me. "Wha..? Alexandra what are you doing? You shouldn't be in here."

"It's the thunderstorm. You know I don't like them." I shuffled closer to Edmund away from the window. "Can...I stay in here with you? I don't want to be on my own."

"Why can't Ivy stay with you?" Edmund grumbled rolling on to his side to face me. I turned my eyes away as a flush grew on my cheeks. He wasn't wearing a night shirt. In five years of being in Narnia and witnessing all of its eccentricities, I still wasn't used to the men who could walk around half naked, whether they were centaurs, dwarves, or fauns.

"She's travelling back from visiting her tree at the Dancing Lawn. She won't be back until tomorrow morning." I quickly explained, placing the still lit candle on the bedside table. "Please Edmund."

"Do you realise what people would think if you were caught in here at this hour?" Edmund sat up and groaned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"That's never bothered you before." I replied indignantly.

"We're not nine anymore Alexandra. We're both older now, there are expectations, there are -"

"Edmund it's not as if anything is going to happen. Like you said we're older now." I huffed rolling my eyes. There was a crash of thunder outside as Edmund's balcony doors flew open, wind and rain drenching the floor. I jumped and let out a scream feeling my heart in my chest beating rapidly. I began to shake again as Edmund sighed and got out of his bed. I couldn't see Edmund as the light from the candle had blown out. All I could see was his dark silhouette as he walked around the room and closed the doors, locking them shut. Edmund turned his head and stared at me. He looked tired and his dark hair was ruffled and sticking up in all angles. _He should have a hair cut,_ I thought absently watching as Edmund groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"You're nearly twenty years old...and you're still scared of thunderstorms?" he sighed incredulously.

"Peter's still scared of the dark." I exclaimed, keeping my voice at a hush as I remembered that the others were only sleeping down the hallway. "At least my fear's rational!"

"What's rational about fearing a thunderstorm?" Edmund scoffed as he padded across to the grand oak wardrobe. He threw open the doors and reached up to the top of the wardrobe, pulling down a large folded blanket. "Fine, I'll sleep on the floor then."

"What? No, I'll sleep on the floor. This is your room." I protested feeling guilty that I had imposed myself into his room. I started to get up but Edmund pushed my shoulders down, forcing me to sit.

"Alexandra, don't be silly. I'll sleep down here and you just go to sleep up there." Edmund dumped the blanket in his hands on the floor and began to spread it out on the floor. "Pass me a couple pillows will you?"

"Are you sure?" I frowned passing down two pillows as Edmund laid down on the floor.

"Yeah sure, you can pay me back by getting me off meetings tomorrow morning." Edmund grinned back at me, punching his pillow before laying his head on it. I rolled my eyes and laid down resting my head on my arms, looking down at Edmund over the edge of the mattress. I suddenly felt safer as we both settled down. There was something I should have told Edmund I knew it, but every time I came close to grasping the thought it slipped out of my hands.

"You're not going to be cranky in the morning are you?" I asked as Edmund rolled over and tipped his head towards me.

"I don't know. We'll have to see now, won't we?" I could guess that he was grinning conspiratorially to himself. I just knew he was planning something mischievous to do tomorrow. _Five years gone and still the same as ever, _I thought rolling my eyes yet again. "What would you like for your birthday by the way?"

I blinked and crawled over staring down at Edmund with a curious frown. "What?"

"It's your birthday soon, isn't it? So what would you like?" he spoke slowly as if I was a simpleton.

"Well, I'm going to need new medicine bottles, and my matron dress is getting a little on the small side -"

"Well, that's all very well and good but that's not what I meant."

"I don't know then. Surprise me." I shrugged flopping myself on to my back and yawned in the most un-ladylike fashion. We had all been taught etiquette classes but Susan, Lucy and I had been given a stricter tutor than the boys, so that when we were older we would be able to find suitable husbands. Obviously, I thought it was a load of tosh.

"Very well then," I heard Edmund mumbled tiredly. "Goodnight Alexandra."

"Wait Edmund, I'm not tired yet." I objected shuffling to the edge of the bed so that my head was hanging upside down and looking at Edmund. I heard Edmund roll on to his side and suddenly felt him flick the side of my nose with a chuckle. "Hey!"

"Are you sure you're scared of thunderstorms?" Edmund asked curiously. "It seems to me that it's just an excuse so you can talk to me all night."

"Makes a change," I commented rubbing the side of my nose as I righted myself up. "You were much worse when we were younger. You could've talked for Britain."

"I was still the first one to sleep though. You kept kicking my side all night." He huffed flopping himself on his back. The moonlight filtering in from the balcony door spilled on the floor and lightly over Edmund's bare torso. His head was resting on a hand whilst his over hand was lying across his stomach. I wanted to look away – I did I swear – but I just couldn't tear my eyes away. His skin was so pale white that I thought he looked cold. I was even tempted to throw down another blanket for him, but I knew Edmund would only throw it back up. I thanked Aslan that Edmund couldn't see me looking at him. He would never let me hear the end of it.

"Edmund, when I came over to your house to sleep over, why did your mother always put me in the same room as you and Peter? Why didn't she put me with Susan and Lucy?" I asked with a frown.

"I don't know. You'd always used to sleep better I suppose." Yawned Edmund, his eyelids drooping heavily. "Can we go to sleep now?"

The room fell into darkness as clouds outside covered up the moonlight spilling into the room. I had completely forgotten the thunderstorm outside and my cheeks felt sticky with dried tears. I tried to remember why I was crying again. Maybe it was just because of the thunderstorm. I stared down at Edmund's darkened form on the floor as he started to snore quietly. My face felt grubby with the dried tears stuck to my face refusing to clear away. I decided I might as well try to get some sleep and settled myself under Edmund's covers, covering myself up to my neck. I wasn't cold. I just wanted to make sure that no part of my body was on show. I knew I was being silly but I _was_ in Edmund's chambers. Just because I had shared a bed with Edmund when I was younger didn't mean that I was completely oblivious to what that would mean now.

Still, I couldn't stop looking at Edmund and thinking there was something I had to tell him, something extremely important that he needed to know. I watched as Edmund rolled over on to his back flinging his arm up by his head. _He's uncomfortable sleeping on the floor,_ I thought guiltily. I couldn't get to sleep knowing that Edmund was uncomfortable. I cast my mind back to this afternoon when I had fallen asleep beside Edmund in the garden. How was it that I could sleep then but not now?

_Ow!_ I thought as I suddenly realised that I had scratched my cheek. It was the same cheek that had been scratched by the White Witch and had now held a long pink scar against my pale skin. The skin on my cheek stung as much as if it had been slapped.

"Edmund," I gasped suddenly scrambling over to the edge of his bed and reached down shaking Edmund's shoulder.

"By the mane, Alexandra what's wrong now? I'm trying to get to sleep." Edmund huffed trying to bat away my hand.

"Edmund, my nightmares are back." I whispered my eyes wide as I sat up. Edmund bolted upright and stared up at me worriedly. He leaned back against his bedside table before he gathered up his blanket and stood up wrapping it around me. He sat down next to me and wrapped his arms around me, cradling me close to him.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" he sighed to which I shrugged and mumbled an "I forgot." in reply, resting my head against his shoulder. My eyes started to droop with drowsiness. "Well, I think it's safe to say I'm going to be grumpy in the morning." I felt Edmund's chest rumble as a chuckle escaped his lips.


	23. A Day at the Beach

_Yelloo!_

_How are you all my lovelies? Here is another update for you. I have only just finished it now and I'm so, so, so, happy about it. :)__ I have new reviewers! It's brilliant, I am so happy about that. I hope you all enjoy my story. Please leave a review. I very much appreciate every review I get. _

_In other news, Firefly.1212 and myself are running a competition named The Unspoken Words of Narnia Awards and I was wondering whether any of you would like to enter it. I have only had one reply but the competition rules and deadline is on my forum in the Chronicles of Narnia sections and the forum is named Competitions for Narnia (very imaginative huh? Believe me not one of my bests) if you want to have a look. _

_Well, other than that, enjoy!  
_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**A Day at the Beach**

"Milady, stronger blocks! How many times do I have to tell you?" Falstaff snapped as I shoved away a sword with my Sais. I gritted my teeth to stop myself from snapping back at him, lunging forward and striking my opponent in the side. Sweat was pouring from my forehead and my dress was sticking to my back in the hot summer morning. We had been training since sunrise in the training grounds in the lower part of the castle, which was also where many of the castle gaurds lived when off duty, and now it was coming close to midday. I was exhausted. "Better!"

I let out a sigh when suddenly I felt a blow to my back as I was hit by the flat side of a sword. "No distractions milady!"

"Falstaff, I am trying my best!" I exclaimed throwing my arms up in the air and startling my opponent to the floor. "We've been at this for hours. Can't we just call it a day?" Falstaff let out a snort and narrowed his eyes at me.

"You should be improving! Why is it that you are still at the same ability as you were five years ago?" Falstaff exclaimed struggling forward on his walking staff. Falstaff's leg had steadily gotten more stiff over the years forcing him to use a walking staff. It was literally the bane of his life. Ivy had even caught him trying to trot without it and he fell to the gorund in agony. Obviously he wasn't in a better mood today.

"I've got a lot of things on my mind. But I am trying my best."

"Well, trying isn't good enough." Falstaff snapped kicking the gravel in to the air and grumbling under his breath. My chest tightened and I felt like hanging my head in shame. I was trying my best. It's not my fault that I'm not as perfect a fighter as Edmund or as good as Susan with Archery. I was doing the best I could with whatever I had. I narrowed my eyes at Falstaff. He had been in a terrible mood for the past few days.

"What's going on Falstaff?" I demanded, sheathing my Sais at my waist.

"What do you mean, Alexandra? There is nothing going on." he replied with a grumble. I frowned. Falstaff never called me by my actual name, no matter how many times I had told him. Now I knew something was definitely wrong.

"Oh really Falstaff?" I raised an eyebrow at him. "You've been in an intolerable mood for the past few days. What's wrong?"

I watched as Falstaff pawed the ground and sighed. Just as the Pevensies and I had grown up, so had Falstaff. His long dark hair and tail was streaked with light brown hair, so light it was almost silver. He must have been in his late twenties/early thirties now. I wasn't too sure. He never told us how old he was exactly but it wasn't really something that came up in a conversation. Falstaff finally looked back up at me uneasily. "It's Ivy."

"Ivy?" I replied feeling utterly confused. I hadn't seen her since she had come back from visiting her tree earlier on in the week. When she had arrived back at the castle I had greeted her from the entrance hall with a huge smile on my face to which she replied with one. However her smile seemed a little strained. I wasn't sure whether she was just tired or unwell so I let her have a few days off to acclimatise back to life away from her tree. That wasn't the only reason I let her off though. When I saw her she seemed a little pink, which was strange because her skin is usually tinged green. "What is it? What's wrong with her?"

Falstaff pawed the ground again. "It's just whenever she visits her tree, she takes me with her. But she didn't this time. She just left without saying anything and now she's been avoiding me since she's been back."

I frowned. That wasn't like Ivy at all. Ivy was just like Lucy in the way she was friendly with everyone. So if she was avoiding Falstaff like this then something must definately be wrong. "Shall I talk with her?"

"No." Falstaff blurted his dark round eyes wide and alarmed that I thought he was going to start panicking. "It's alright milady, I'm just...it's nothing."

"It can't be nothing Falstaff if you're worried about her." I said concerned that Falstaff was acting like this. I had never seen Falstaff like this before. It was...well, I'd say unnerving to say the least. "Everything will be fine Falstaff, you'll see."

"Very well, I think that'll be all for today." Falstaff sighed as he started to tidy up the weapons and equipment we had used today. "You may go."

"I will see you this evening then. Goodbye." I began walking back up to the castle through the lower city grounds, starting to feel my aching joints screaming in pain. I had never trained so hard in one morning. I think I will have a relaxing bath, then take the rest of the day off and do some reading just to relax myself. I was almost at the Castle gates when suddenly I saw the Pevensies riding on horseback towards me, smiling and talking together as they went. Also, as much of a coincidence as I could get from this morning, I spotted Ivy walking alongside Lucy and Susan carrying some towels on her arms.

"Alexandra there you are!" Peter exclaimed from his steed as soon as they noticed me walking back up the street. I smiled as Peter's warm grin filled up most of his face. "We were heading down to the shore for a swim. Why don't you come along?"

"I've just had some training with Falstaff, so I'm a little tired." I replied slowing to a stop.

"Oh come on Alexandra! You don't have to go in the water." Lucy whined, her small round face pulling into a little pout. "You can look after the towels with Ivy." I glanced over at Ivy to see her with a small strained smile on her face. _She looks like she's in pain,_ my grandmother's concerned voice spoke in my mind and I couldn't help but agree with it. Ivy had been avoiding Falstaff ever since she had come back. Maybe they were having relationship problems.

"Okay, if you insist." I sighed heading over to Peter who offered his arm out for me to take. Holding tightly on to his arm, I jumped and swung my leg over the back over the horse until I was sat behind Peter with my arms wrapped firmly around Pete's strong waist.

"So," Peter said striking up a conversation as he kicked his horse forward. "Are you looking forward to your birthday tomorrow?"

"Is it really tomorrow?" I had thought that it was a few days from now.

"Of course it is, how can could you forget your own birthday?" Lucy replied rolling her eyes with a grin on her face as if I was forgetful of everything. The saying of "forgetting your head if it wasn't screwed on" definitely applies to me.

"I guess I've been really busy lately," I shrugged tightening my grip around Peter as the road before us began to slope downwards.

"You're always busy." Edmund chuckled as he steered his horse right beside Peter's at an easy trot. "We haven't seen you once over the past few days. What on earth could you have been doing?"

I rolled my eyes at him and aimed to hit him in the shoulder. I missed. "Well we can't all rule a country now can we? I've been trying to help all of the patients get better in time for the Summer Solstice on the Dancing Lawn."

"Ah, the celebrations!" Peter beamed. "I cannot wait until we get to the Dancing Lawn tomorrow. I hear the Dryads and the Fauns are doing a spectacular job so far. Is that so Ivy?"

"Yes indeed your Majesty," Ivy replied, her face growing pink to white before finally settling on green. "Everyone's so excited. The Empress has been overseeing the preparations and had sent a messenger just yesterday saying that everything is going well."

From what Ivy had told me about Dryad culture, there are five tribes of dryads right across the whole of Narnia, but the closest tribe to Cair Paravel (and in fact the same tribe Ivy had once had family in before the war) was ruled by their Empress called Nina. She was kind of like the mother figure in the tribe, overseeing everyone with a firm but fair hand.

Peter and the others exchanged grins of excitement but I turned around to look at Ivy. Her skin had now turned a rosy pink and she had stopped in the middle of the road as if she was catching her breath. "Ivy, are you alright?" I called back over my shoulder. She looked up surprised as her skin suddenly changed back to green.

"I'm fine milady. Just catching my breath." She immediately jogged to catch up with us, ignoring the concerned frown on my face. I decided to let it go for now and speak with her later at the beach whilst everyone was having fun.

It wasn't very long until we had reached the beach. Lucy and Peter were the first into the water with Edmund trailing behind them, still trying to tug his shoes off as he hopped along on one foot. Susan, I must say was a lot more graceful than her brothers and sister. She had also made sure she didn't get her dress wet as she went in to the water. Ivy and I laid out two towels for us to sit on in the shade. Taking off my shoes, I burrowed my poor aching feet into the sand feeling the soft warmth spread all over my skin like the softest cottin. Ivy was a little shaky when she sat herself down beside me and a nagging feeling in the back of my mind made me worry about her. There was something wrong with her I could tell that much.

"So, are you looking forward to the Summer Solstice Milady?" Ivy beamed happily. I nodded my head and smiled back at her. My birthday was coincidentally on the same day as the Summer Solstice which was quite a surprise when we first found out when I turned fifteen. There had been a week long celebration then as it was the first time since the end of the Witch's reign that we could celebrate the summer. I was so tired then I was amazed that the others could stand up and walk about afterwards.

"It should be a good time. Are you going to dance at the party then?" I asked leaning back against the trunk of one of the trees we were under. Out in the water, the Pevensies were all splashing each other, soaking each other to the bone. There was a huge splash, followed by laughter as Edmund ended up on his bum in the the water.

"Um…not this year, I think. Maybe I could just watch." Ivy replied as she watched the others playing in the sea.

"What? Why not? Don't you want to dance with Falstaff this year?"

Ivy hung her head and stared at her hands in her lap. "No it's not that I don't want to…"

"Then what?" I turned towards her with a frown on my face. I decided to just ask her. "Ivy, is there something wrong? Falstaff's been really worried about you ever since you came back from visiting your tree."

"Oh is he?" She asked innocently, her hands in her lap beginning to fidget.

"Have you two had a fight or something?" I watched as Ivy tensed at the word 'fight'. _I knew it. They've been arguing._ I thought sadly wondering whether I should console her or not. "Look Ivy, whatever it is, it will all work out. You'll see. It's not the end of the world. I bet –

"We haven't been fighting, Alexandra. We haven't been doing anything of the sort." Ivy blurted, one of her hands flying to her chest as her skin grew pale white and then settle on pink. She had a dazed look in her eyes as if she'd gone dizzy from spinning around.

"Ivy, Ivy are you alright? You don't look so well." I knelt up by her and helped her lie down on the towel beneath us, pressing my hand to her forehead to check her temperature. "Whoa, you're burning up. What's going on Ivy? You need to tell me."

Suddenly she let out a yell as she clutched her stomach. Her skin was fluctuating from pink to green to white and even to blue. Pearly white tears were slipping down her cheeks as her whole body trembled in pain. I glanced up at the others who had just stopped in the water and were looking over at us curiously. "Ivy, what is going on?" I demanded as I rubbed her back and tucked her hair behind her ears.

"Please don't tell Falstaff. It was going to - ah! It was going to be a surprise." Ivy exclaimed as I laid her on her side. She curled up clutching her stomach in pain. Suddenly everything seemed to fit into place.

"Ivy…are you pregnant?" I could hear hurried footsteps slapping on the sand in the distance as the Pevensies ran up the beach towards us. Ivy's face became twisted as she nodded her head. My head began to swim.

"I wanted to have an offspring. Just one and I've been trying to create one on my own." Ivy confessed as Edmund and the others skidded to a stop around us.

"What's going on? Is Ivy alright?" Edmund asked placing a hand on my shoulder as if I was the one who needed comforting.

"Ivy's pregnant." I said, shock filling up their faces as I tried to help Ivy. "But why's your stomach hurting? Are you going to lose it?"

"No, this is natural for trees." Ivy gasped back as another wave of pain passed through her. "But something's wrong I need to be closer to my tree so I can find out what."

"We'll take you." Peter declared as Susan and Lucy jumped up to grab the horses. "Edmund, Alexandra, you go and tell Falstaff what is going on."

"No! I don't want to spoil the surprise." Ivy exclaimed, her eyes wide and pleading as she knelt up and stared at Peter. "Please I don't want him to know yet."

"Ivy, please be rational." I begged her grabbing her hands so that she'll look at her. "If we don't tell Falstaff what's going on and we lose you, he's never going to forgive us or you. Besides, how can you keep a baby secret? He'd go in to shock!"

"Alexandra's right Ivy," Edmund spoke gently as Lucy and Susan brought the horses around. We all began to help Ivy up on to one of the horses. "Unexpected fatherhood is not a good way to tell a man you love them."

"Ed!"

Edmund stared around at us all in surprise. "What?"

I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from laughing. Ivy shook her head and groaned. "Please, just wait until the pain goes and then tell him if you must. Please."

"Fine we will." I agreed to which everyone stared at me in shock. "What? We have to respect her wishes. Send a messanger to the castle when Ivy's okay and then we'll tell Falstaff."

"Okay," Peter nodded his head in agreement as Susan got up behind Ivy and held her on the horse so that she didn't fall off on the journey to the Dancing Lawn. Ivy bent double in pain. "Right let's go, quickly."

A moment later Edmund and I were watching Ivy, Peter and Susan ride off along the beach. It felt like there was a pit in my chest that was growing bigger and emptier the further they rode away from us. Edmund let out a loud sigh and headed up to the towels on the sandy ground. "Well, that was a shock." Edmund commented over his shoulder. I sighed and followed him, letting myself sit down on the towel next to where Edmund was stood rubbing his head furiously with the towel.

"I can't believe she didn't tell me before. She's practically had all week." I grumbled pulling my knees up to my chin. Edmund flopped down on the sand and began to wring water out of his shirt. The white linen of the shirt had almost turned see-through, showing off the clear peach colour of Edmund's skin. I tried not to look.

"Well, maybe she didn't want to get her hopes up. I mean there could've been a chance that she would've lost the baby." Edmund replied reasonably with a tip of his head.

"You mean like this afternoon." I said flatly.

"Exactly." He nodded his head and turned to me. "Why don't you do some swimming? It might take your mind off everything."

"You know I can't swim." I shook my head and lay down on the towel, looking up at the orange sky. I hadn't realised how much time had gone past since we had arrived at the beach this evening. I guess it was later than I thought it was.

"Really? You still can't swim." Edmund raised one of his eyebrow in an incredulous expression.

"Maybe you should teach me. Another time of course." I turned my head to him and sent him a grin. A thoughtful expression appeared on his face as he stared out to sea. A moment later he let out a chuckle. "What is it?"

"You're scared of thunderstorms, you can't swim," Edmund chuckled counting each one off on his fingers. "You still suck your thumb and hum in your sleep –

"I do not!"

Edmund raised his eyebrow at me and tipped his head to the side. "Oh Alexandra, trust me when I say you still suck your thumb and hum in your sleep."

"You fibber!" I sat up and turned my back to him, a huge wonderous grin planted on my face. Suddenly I felt his fingers ghost over my ribs and I jerked, letting out a squeal and falling backwards into Edmund. I tried batting him off jerking this way and that trying to escape from his skittery fingers, kicking sand into the air and laughing as I went. Somehow during the great battle of the tickles, I had landed on my back with Edmund still tickling my sides. I aimed my hand and swiftly batted his stomach, to which he fell across on top of me, all of his breath flying out of his chest in an "Oof!"

He felt quite heavy as he laid across me but he wasn't heavy enough to suffocate me. It seemed quite comforting in fact. I could feel his heart beating against my own as he breathed. I had never felt so warm in my life. I knew this was inappropriate, afterall there were only a few layers of clothes seperating us but I found that I couldn't give a damn. My mind flitted back to a dream I had two nights ago, one where I was in my bed and Edmund was kissing me with so much passion that I could burst. I could still remember the taste of his lips in my dream.

Edmund shuffled back and leaned on his elbows looking down at me with a small smile on his face. The orange glow of the sky nearly made it hard to look at him. He looked almost heavenly, as if he were an angel sent from Aslan himself to make me happy. I didn't even realise that I was gazing into his eyes, his beautiful round chocolate brown eyes, or in fact that he seemed to be getting closer. I glanced at his lips which were still fixed in a pleasant smile and I felt a nervous flutter in my belly. My heart began to race and I could feel myself leaning up, close enough that my mouth was mere inches away from his own when his smile fell from his face.

"Um...sorry. I didn't mean to fall on you." Edmund mumbled as he sat up brushing the sand off his clothes and his hands. "I took it too far. My apologies."

"It's okay Edmund. I didn't mind." I replied sitting up and turning my gaze towards the sea. My heart was still beating madly in my chest but I remianed still. I could hear the almost deafening crashes of the waves colliding into the rocks of the cliff, of which Cair Paravel sat proudly upon like a beacon of light in the growing darkness.

"I think we should go back up to the castle." Edmund spoke as he stood up hastily, gathering the towels and my shoes in his arms. I numbly stood up beside him and quietly followed as Edmund hurriedly set off towards the castle. I didn't even realise how far we had walked along the beach until I heard a loud snap. I whirled around, gripping my sais at my waist scanning the forestry skirting along the beach. Out of the corner of my eye, I could've sworn I saw a flash of red dissappear in the dark green undergrowth, a red so dark I almost thought that it was a flame.

_Must've been a fox..._I thought relaxing and turning back towards the castle, my mind reeling in my less than safe thoughts of Edmund and my even more dangerous dream.


	24. The Party on the Dancing Lawn

_Hello!_

_Okay, to start off, I am so incredibly sorry that this update is so late. I've been having exams, coursework, an unexpected house move, parents splitting up and no computer. In other words, complete hell. Oh and a bit of a rubbish 18th birthday party. This chapter is practically the only thing that's keeping me cheery at the moment. So to cheer me up this is a double-long chapter for you to read. _

_Secondly I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed my story last time. You are all legends. Also welcome to the story _**BlueCrystalWater14, Infamous Maraudette **_and _**MusicBlack95. **_I hope you all continue to read and review. _

_Thirdly, for those who read A Worthy Warrior (previously named Worthy) by Firefly.1212, you will see a very familiar face within this chapter and also mentions a few other familiar faces from her story. All characters such as Zia, Nina, and Breejit are all the work of Firefly.1212. I do not own them, I'm only borrowing them. _

_And lastly, the Unspoken Words of Narnia Awards created by Firefly.1212 and myself has had an extended deadline due to lack of entries. The new deadline is now on 8th May 2012 (or otherwise known as City of Lost Souls day to Mortal Instruments fans)._

_Other trivia for this chapter the chapter soundtrack inspiration is A Narnia Lullaby from the Narnia soundtrack and also the after party scene in City of Glass by Cassandra Clare. (I'm a big Mortal Instruments fan too.)_

_I have also decided to let you have a preview of the chapter heading of the next chapter and I will be doing this from now on. The next chapter heading is_ **Heartache for Edmund.**

_I think that's all. Please leave a review I'd love to hear your opinions. And please consider entering the competition. You can see the rules and quotes on the forum Competitions for Narnia on this site._

_Enjoy and stay tuned!_

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**The Affairs of the Heart **

**The Party on the Dancing Lawn**

"Are you ready? Ssh, don't wake her up!" I heard a whisper from far away in my dark slumber. I turned my head into my pillow in an attempt to shy away from the noise. I was nice and warm in my bed and I just didn't want to be woken up just yet. I felt a dip in my bed just to the side of where I was sleeping. "Alright, ready? Three, two...one!" Suddenly there was a tremendous uproar. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

I woke with a yell, sitting up in my bed whilst pulling my bed-covers up to my chin. As my vision began to clear, I was met with the sight of Peter, Susan, Edmund, Lucy and Mr Tumnus grinning back at me. Lucy crawled over to me on my bed and flung her arms around my neck, pulling me into a tight hug. A smile filled up my face as I relaxed back on to my pillows. "Don't do that! You scared the living daylights out of me!"

"Happy birthday Alexandra," Lucy smiled ignoring my last comment as she pulled away and sat down with her legs crossed underneath her.

"What are you all doing in here?" I asked as I spotted Peter walking around Edmund with a breakfast tray in his hands. "What's this for?"

"It's a birthday breakfast in bed." Peter said carefully placing the tray on my lap. Displayed on the tray was a tall glass of cool orange juice and a plate full of my favourite food.

"Hmm, scrambled eggs on toast! My favourite," I smiled immediately picked up my knife and fork and tucked in. "Oh, with mushrooms and tomatoes too! Thank you, guys."

"Actually, that was from Flora." Edmund admitted with an easy grin on his face. "She also sent a message saying that if you leave any crumbs in your bed she will not be a happy goat."

I looked down at myself to find a few crumbs rolling down my front on to my blankets. "Oops." I quickly brushed the crumbs off onto the floor and resumed eating my breakfast.

"We're going to give you our presents in the council room, since it's not being used this morning. We'll leave you to get dressed with your lady's maid." Susan said as she and the other's turned to walk out of my chambers. I looked up at her with surprise.

"Is Ivy back then?" I was hoping that Ivy was alright. I hadn't seen her since she rode off with the Pevensies at the beach. We had got a messenger back saying that it was just a false alarm but it would be better if she stayed at her tree a little while longer. We had told Falstaff then that Ivy was pregnant and he had gone as white as a sheet. Obviously, the baby wasn't his because trees could create their own offspring on their own but since he was courting Ivy, the baby would become his as well.

"Um, no." Susan replied sadly. I felt my shoulders sag and my appetite had not been what I it had been earlier. "But we will see her tonight though."

"Oh, okay. I suppose I'll see you later on then." I took a sip of my orange juice and watched as the others walked out of my chambers. As soon as the door was shut I began to think of the events of yesterday. Everything that had happened at the beach with Ivy, discovering that she was pregnant, and then she almost lost it, was a bit of a shock. Actually, it was a huge shock. We were all trying to come to terms with it. Sometime soon Ivy was going to give birth to a baby.

Then I began to think of what had happened with Edmund on the beach. It was the oddest sensation I had ever felt. I knew that he was my friend and that was all he could ever be. But last night I had a dream that seemed so unreal I didn't want to believe it. I had dreamt that I was standing in an unfamiliar part of the woods. I assumed it was the Western Woods because there was no other wood that seemed this huge in Narnia. I was dressed in a long grey peasant dress, one I had never seen before or had even been made in Narnia. It was tied tightly around my waist and chest like a corset, with the skirt falling lightly around my hips and legs. I was bare foot and my shoulders were bare. I had almost felt naked with my skin on show like this. I tried shifting my hair to cover my shoulders when I heard a rustle behind me.

Edmund was striding towards me with a smile on his face. I couldn't help but smile back as a fluttery feeling in my stomach just increased tenfold. My face began to warm as Edmund held my face and kissed me. My eyes closed in bliss as I held him back pressing my lips more firmly against his. He pulled me against him and lifted me up but that was when the dream ended.

I didn't know for sure whether that dream was just my imagination or whether it was one of my _other dreams_. I was secretly hoping that it would happen, whether it would happen now or in the future. I got out of my bed and started to dress, brushing my hair and pinning it back into a messy bun. I had learned how to do my hair properly so that it would be neat and tidy, but today I wasn't totally bothered. I wasn't going outside of the castle today until this evening when we went to the Dancing Lawn.

I clasped my necklace around my neck and pinched my cheeks to make them a bit pinker, smiled at my reflection before heading down to the council room that the Pevensies had said to meet. Today I was twenty years old. I was finally an adult. Funny, I still didn't feel like one yet. Maybe I would feel like an adult later on in the day. As I walked along I spotted Mr and Mrs Beaver stood at the door to the council room. I beamed and waved at them. "Oh my goodness! Hello!"

"Hello Alexandra! My, haven't you grown?" Mrs Beaver said with a furry smile. Both Mr and Mrs Beaver had a few grey streaks in their fur due to their age. We hadn't seen them in years, only visiting the castle for birthdays or for Christmas, although last year, they had decided to stay in their own home for that Christmas. "Happy birthday Alexandra! Are you excited?"

"I'm very excited. Are you staying for the day?" I asked as I pushed the doors open for them and walked in to the council room. Mrs Beaver nodded her head as she waddled after her husband and crawled up on to one of the smaller seats around the table. The Pevensies smiled at us, holding their presents in their hands as we walked in and Lucy grabbed my hand, tugging me along to the top of the table to sit down. Usually this was Peter's seat as he was the High King, with Edmund to his left and Susan to his right. Lucy would sit next to Susan and I would sit next to Edmund with the rest of the council sat down wherever they wanted. I guess today would be different because Peter, Susan Lucy and Edmund were sat anywhere that had a spare seat.

"Open mine first! Open mine first!" Lucy beamed almost bouncing up and down in her seat as she nudged her present forward.

"Alright Lucy, calm down. Give her a chance to breathe." Edmund chuckled as he seated himself beside Susan. Peter remained stood up behind me, looking over my shoulder. Lucy's present had a peculiar shape, long but round at the same time. As the paper fell open, lying in the middle of the paper was a Rag-doll with long black strands of hair made out of strips of cloth and with round brown buttons for eyes.

"Oh wow Lucy, this is brilliant. I love it." I exclaimed gingerly picking up the doll, afraid that it would fall apart if I was too rough.

"Ivy helped me make it. It's a mini Alexandra!" Lucy blushed as a huge smile filled her face. I reached over and gave her a hug before sitting the doll up so that it looked life-like. Susan pushed her present forward saying a quiet happy birthday. Her present was a small box with a bright blue bow on the top. I smiled and opened the box revealing a pair of sapphire earrings.

"I tried to find some that matched your necklace but I couldn't find any, so I got you these instead. Edmund told me your favourite colour is blue." Susan smiled sending a look towards Edmund who shrugged back with an easy smile.

"Thank you. They're really lovely." I said blushing a little at the fact that Edmund remembered my favourite colour. "I'll wear them tonight at the Dancing Lawn."

"Oh and I also had another matron dress made for you by the seamstress. It should be in your wardrobe by tomorrow." Susan added. I glanced at Edmund and quirked my eyebrow in a question. He replied with a shrug. _I should have known._ I thought remembering the little conversation I had with Edmund when I slept in his room during the night of the storm.

I nodded and said my thanks as Peter tapped me on the shoulder. I looked up at Peter. He had a guilty look on his face as he cleared his throat with a cough. "I am sorry about this. I completely forgot about your birthday. It's just I've been so busy lately, what with the giants and all." I felt a small pang of disappointment. Peter had been working on a way to negotiate with the giants of the north who had started to rebel against Narnia. We wouldn't have this problem if the White Witch hadn't promised them something in return for their alliance in the Battle of Beruna.

"That's alright Peter. I could just have a hug instead." I smiled standing up and wrapping my arms around Peter's waist. He hugged me back tightly with a warm smile. As we broke apart I grinned cheekily at him and tapped my cheek. He rolled his eyes and placed a friendly peck on my cheek before I sat down. Everyone turned towards Edmund expectantly who scratched the back of his neck nervously. He always did this whenever he was nervous or embarrassed so I began to wonder what he had gotten me.

"Well, you'd be glad to know I've got a surprise for you." He said as he held out a rectangular present wrapped up in a cloth. It was fairly big and it looked quite fragile. I placed it on the table in front of Mini-Alexandra and gently un-wrapped it. Lying amongst the wrappings was a tatty old book. I grinned back at him despite the sounds of disgust coming from his siblings.

"Eww, Edmund where did you get that, out of the kitchen bins?" Susan exclaimed.

"Yeah Ed, it looks like it's about to fall apart!" Lucy said lifting up the corner of the book and watched as a few flakes of the paper fell to the table.

"Guys, it's alright. It's my old _Greek Myths _book. Edmund, where did you find it?" I asked in awe as Edmund's cheeks grew pink.

"Well, it was still in the Lantern Waste and I found it on one of my patrols."

"But Ed, how is Alexandra supposed to read from it? All of the ink is going to be smudged." Lucy grimaced as her nose crinkled.

A grin appeared on Edmund's face. "Ah, I thought about that too." Edmund revealed a thick leather book, the pages bright and dust-free with the cover and spine in perfect condition. I gasped and held the book in my hands, almost afraid to open it in case I damaged it. Gingerly I lifted the cover and peered at the first page, the gold-leafed title on the cover glinting proudly in the light. Inside there was a short inscription;

_To my dear friend Alexandra,_

_I hope this will help ward off the nightmares._

_Happy Birthday._

_Edmund._

"Oh Edmund I could kiss you!" I exclaimed happily, filled with so much joy I could just jump up and down all day and not get tired. Seeing the words of my favourite stories again was like being reunited with a long lost friend from when I was a baby. My books are like babies to me, the most precious things I possess. If they were gone then...well, I don't want to even think of what that would be like.

Edmund coughed as his cheeks grew even pinker than as I clutched my book to my chest. "Oh best not, took me ages to get rid of the cooties last time." Edmund chuckled and I rolled my eyes (as did everyone else I'm sure).

"How old are you Edmund? Twelve?" I asked sarcastically. He stuck his tongue out at me childishly and I stuck mine out back at him, causing everyone in the room to laugh.

The morning went well after that, talk from my birthday turning towards the party this evening. I was more excited than I thought I would be about going to the Summer Solstice party. Sure I had been to one before but there was just something in the atmosphere today that made it seem like tonight was going to be better than before. All of the other parties before seemed like one of Lucy's tea parties.

The day was fairly quiet until the evening. Lucy, Susan and I spent our afternoon choosing our dresses that we were going to wear later, styling our hair and also putting on make up. Usually, I don't wear make up at all, mostly because I was working with sick patients and couldn't contaminate anyone, but today I wanted to look nice. A girl had a right to look nice on her birthday, right?

"Oh, which one should I wear?" Susan complained as she laid two dresses out on the bed in front of her. To me they were just two ordinary plain dresses (which comes at a bit of a shock when you know Susan's sense of taste for the theatrical), one the colour of the eastern ocean and the other the colour of a dark bouquet of roses.

"Why don't you just wear the one you were going to wear to the ball?" Lucy replied watching Susan's reaction from her reflection in the mirror. Susan stared back at us with a look of horror.

"What a preposterous idea! What if the dress gets ruined tonight? It would be awful." Susan replied as she turned back and frowned at the dresses as if it was the dresses fault.

"Well, pick the brown one. Therefore if it gets dirty it would blend in with the fabric." I suggested. Susan pursed her lips in thought and turned back to her dresses on the bed. After a few minutes she shook her head and muttered that she'd put on her green dress. Lucy and I caught each other's expressions in the mirror in front of us and rolled our eyes. Susan was probably the fussiest woman we'd ever known.

"So," Susan started casting a look at Lucy and then at me. "Edmund told us that your dreams are back…"

I tensed in my seat and looked down at my hands. Lucy finished pinning a curl of my hair back into a bun and placed a wooden handled brush on the table. "What was the dream about?" Lucy asked tentatively.

I gulped and slowly looked up at Susan and Lucy. They were looking at me worriedly and I fought back the urge to snap at them. They only wanted to make sure I was alright, that's all. They weren't keeping secrets from me. "I…I don't really know what I saw."

"Sure you do." Susan said throwing herself into an armchair in the corner. "Are you trying to keep something from us again?"

"Of course not Su," I threw a narrowed look at her. "I meant that I really couldn't see anything. One of the dreams was dark and I couldn't even see my hands in front of my eyes."

"What about the others? You said that was one of them." Susan frowned. I felt a flush warming up my cheeks and I looked away embarrassed. Susan unfortunately noticed. "Ooh! My, my Alexandra, who's the lucky man then?"

I could see Susan and Lucy grinning at each other out of the corner of my eye. I groaned and put my head on the desk. They were never going to shut up about this. Why, oh why did I have to be in this room now?

"Well, it's going to be Edmund of course!" Lucy laughed and I looked up at her shocked.

"It is not!" I exclaimed, to which they both grinned at each other. "It's not Edmund, I swear. I would know if it was him anyway."

"Oh would you?" Susan raised her eyebrow and let out a girlish giggle. "What have you two been doing then?"

Susan just _had_ to make it worse, didn't she?

"What do you mean 'what we've been doing'? We haven't been doing anything like _that_!" I could hear my voice rising almost hysterically as I spoke.

"Like what?" Lucy asked innocently looking between me and Susan as if we were holding some secret from her.

"It's seems to me dear sister, that our Edmund and Alexandra here have been quite naughty." Susan chuckled darkly. "Just look at how red she's gone!"

I clamped my hands over my ears and hummed as loudly as I could. Lucy frowned and looked back at Susan. "Well, what have they done then?" _Thank goodness Ivy hasn't given her the Talk yet,_ I thought gratefully as I continued to hum.

"Very, _very_ _naughty_ things," Susan laughed. I couldn't take much more of this.

"La-la-la-la-la!" I bellowed as loud as I could and dashed through the door to my chambers, running down the hall away from Susan's laughter. I spotted Peter's door and pushed through it slamming the door closed behind me and sighed. Peter let out a yelp and hurriedly ducked his head behind the changing screen in the corner. "Whoops! Sorry Pete."

"What are you doing in my room?" he called back from behind the screen as he fumbled with something.

"Susan's driving me mad, I had to escape." I huffed and plopped down on the edge of his bed, facing away from the screen. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and I leapt and ran straight into Peter's wardrobe. "Oh goodness, if it's Susan and Lucy, tell them I'm not here!"

The door creaked open and I peered around the wardrobe door. I let out a sigh of relief as I saw Edmund. Then I remembered what had actually caused the embarrassment from earlier. I strode up to Edmund and whacked his arm.

"Ow! What on earth have I apparently done now?" He rolled his eyes as he rubbed his arm.

"You just had to tell them didn't you? Do you know what I've just had to go through?" I shuddered to myself. Edmund frowned in confusion. "Susan probably thinks we're courting now –

"W-what?" Edmund spluttered suddenly as Peter popped his shaggy blonde head around the changing screen. "We're not courting. It's ridiculous, we're just friends. Why would we be courting?"

"So you're not courting then?" Peter asked confusedly.

"No!" Edmund and I exclaimed at the same time. Peter blinked and raised his hands in a calming gesture.

"It is ridiculous," I said glancing at Edmund before shaking my head. "I mean, can't a man and a woman just be friends without people assuming that we're courting?"

"Exactly," Edmund readily agreed. "Why would I court Alexandra?" Edmund turned his head to me and I noticed his cheeks were growing pinker. "Not that you aren't pretty or anything, because you are I –I mean, you do look lovely today – not that you don't look lovely everyday…"

"Um…thanks?" I replied blankly, confused that Edmund had turned the conversation around to my appearance. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Peter shaking his head and quietly snickering into his hand. I turned to face him. "What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing," Peter replied innocently. "It's just a shame you two aren't courting really."

"What?" Edmund spluttered turning wide eyed to his brother.

"You make Edmund here almost look like a charming gentleman." Peter turned his back on us and dived swiftly behind the changing screen just as a scarlet embroidered cushion sailed past him from the direction of Edmund. "Hey, Edmund it was only a joke! Now come on I need to get ready for the departure."

"Charming gentleman? Charming?" Edmund began to mutter as we headed out of Pete's chambers and down the grand corridor. "I can be charming."

"Don't take it to heart Edmund. Peter was only teasing."

"It's not that I don't know how to be charming, it's just that I don't want to." Edmund explained defensively, as if I was accusing him of treason.

"I know, Edmund."

"What does Peter know? He doesn't even speak to any women when there's a celebration, only Susan, Lucy, you and Falstaff."

"He speaks to Ivy, Flora, Laurel and Poppy too."

"He's not courting anyone either, so what's it to him who I court anyway?" I huffed and rolled my eyes figuring that I might as well be talking to a brick wall. "I could just go up to a girl tonight at the dancing lawn and ask her to dance if I wanted."

"And I'm pretty sure she'd snog you if you asked her too." I muttered looking up at one of the tapestries hung up on the wall in the corridor. It was just another not-so-perfect depiction of the Battle of Beruna of which Aslan came roaring in and killed the Witch.

"All in all it's just that I don't _want_ too." Edmund concluded. I stopped and looked back at him with a frown.

"Why?" I asked causing him to stop as well and turn back to me. "Why don't you want to?"

Edmund blinked and moved from foot to foot. "Well…I don't know. I just…I suppose I'm just not interested in that sort of thing."

"But why?" I watched as Edmund scratched the back of his neck and turned to continue walking down the corridor. I slowly followed after him wondering what he could be hiding. "Come on Edmund, you can tell me."

"Well, I suppose…I suppose in a sense that I've already found a sweetheart." Edmund finally confessed looking back at me. It felt like I had just walked straight into a brick wall. Edmund had a sweetheart? _Who_? Edmund frowned a little at me. "Alexandra, are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine." I choked clearing my throat with a cough and forcing my feet forward in a walk down the corridor beside Edmund. "D-Do I know her?"

The corner of Edmund's mouth twitched. "You might do."

"Who is she? It's not Mrs Beaver is it? Shame on you if it is, she's a married beaver." I said rapidly, starting forward down the grand entrance staircase to the palace. All of the stairs and the walls are all made from the whitest marble, complete with strong pillars holding up the ceiling.

"Of course not Alexandra, don't be so silly." Edmund rolled his eyes and followed after me. "In fact never mind. Forget I said anything."

"No Edmund," I stared back at him over my shoulder as I walked. "I am happy for you and your sweetheart. I'm sure she's a lovely girl."

"No that's not what I meant – Alexandra, look out!"

My left ankle twisted as my foot slipped on a slippery wet puddle on a step. I felt my body tipped forward and I desperately reached out to try and balance myself but I wobbled even more. I almost tumbled over my feet when I suddenly felt Edmund grab my waist and pull me back against him. My heart was beating rapidly with adrenaline and I gasped in shock clasping my hand against my chest to feel my heart thrumming beneath my skin.

"Careful," Edmund murmured into my ear as I relaxed and stepped down on to a dry step. "Don't want you to spend your birthday in the infirmary."

"Thank you." I murmured back to him just as a little red-faced faun with curly red hair and fur ran up the stairs towards us, the _clip-clip_ of his hooves clattering against the stone.

"I am _so_ sorry your majesty – oh and your ladyship. I was just gone for a minute to get another bucket of clean water. I'm such a silly faun." The poor faun cried his eyes red and puffy.

"It's alright Festus," Edmund replied courteously with a nod of his head. "Just make sure it gets cleaned up before someone else gets hurt." The faun nodded furiously before he hurriedly began his work.

Edmund and I continued on our way without even continuing our conversation from earlier. I couldn't get my head around it though. Edmund had a sweetheart. _Edmund _had a _sweetheart?_ _How_? He only ever spoke to me or to Susan, Lucy and Ivy. Whenever there was a ball he always stayed talking to either Falstaff or some of the Knights who had emigrated from the Lone Islands offering their alliances to the crown just a couple of years into the Pevensies reign. So how could Edmund have a sweetheart? I guess I must've missed something.

It wasn't long before we were travelling to the Dancing Lawn. The sun was beginning to set casting up orangey pink colours across the sky. It was probably one of the beautiful sights I had ever seen. The horses trundled on through the countryside with us riding on their backs, merrily chatting and laughing. Everyone is so excited to go to the party but I was looking forward to seeing Ivy and Falstaff. I really wanted to know if they were alright.

When we eventually arrived at the Dancing Lawn I stopped and I could feel my jaw dropping in awe at the vast sight in front of us. In the middle of the lawn was a huge gloriously orange bonfire surrounded by dancing fauns, dryads, Talking Beasts and red dwarves among other Narnian creatures who had obviously travelled in from far across Narnia to attend the celebration. Up in the trees were rows upon rows of paper lanterns with candles inside them glowing brightly (in a few of the lanterns I could've sworn I saw a few fireflies and a couple of fairies inside). This party seemed like no other party I had ever attended in my life, not even the Coronation. Dryads and Fauns were dancing merrily together, Talking Beasts were chatting and drinking wine being poured by a jolly round man with laurel leaves in his hair.

"Come on Alexandra! Come and dance!" Lucy exclaimed grabbing my hand and running towards the bonfire. I ran along after her with a wide grin on my face. I couldn't dance very well (My ability of dancing is around hopping from one foot to the other like I was on hot coals). Eventually one of the fauns, a faun who looked remarkably like Peter but half goat, took my hand and decided to teach me to try and cause fewer injuries to other dancers around me. To say the least I was fairly embarrassed but agreed.

After what seemed like an hour Lucy eventually found me again, exclaiming that there was a chain being made that would lead everyone around the Dancing Lawn. I came up with an idea. "One minute Lucy, I'll just be two minutes."

"Well, hurry!" Lucy ran off into the crowd and I ran the other way searching this way and that for Edmund, hoping that he would join in. I eventually found him standing by the drinks stand talking to a woman with wild red curly hair, littered with fresh green leaves and bright green eyes. She was wearing a dress which stopped at her knees with sleeves that wrapped around her arms down to her wrists. They were both smiling at each other as they talked and I felt a slight twinge in my chest. I shook my head and took a deep breath running up to Edmund and grabbing his hand.

"Edmund, everyone's starting a chain. Come and join in." I smiled tugging him along. Hurriedly, he put down his wine goblet and hastily grabbed the other girl's hand as I lead them towards the bonfire and joined the rest of the chain. I glanced out of the corner of my eye at Edmund's hand holding the other girl's and I was struck with a thought. _Could this girl be Edmund's sweetheart?_

The Chain led us all around the Dancing Lawn, twice around the bonfire, once around the drink's stand and the stage where a group of talented Narnians playing fast music on pan pipes, three times around the beach and surrounding trees before ending back by the bonfire. I felt hot and thirsty as applause erupted in the air. I decided to get a drink. I watched, sipping from my goblet, as Edmund walked with the red haired girl towards me, a smile on both of their faces.

Edmund looked up at me and his grin widened. "Alexandra! I'd like you to meet Zia." The Red haired girl bowed into an awkward curtsey, her cheeks growing pinker by the second. I smiled back at her.

"Charmed to meet you, Zia," A small memory appeared in my mind. "I'm sorry, but have we met before?"

Zia nodded. "Yes, I think we bumped into each other during the Battle of Beruna."

"Yes I remember now." I beamed taking another sip of my wine. There was a shout from the crowd and Edmund excused him to find out what was going on, leaving Zia and me alone. As I watched Edmund walk away I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Zia was watching him as well. There was a small smile creeping up on her face. I coughed to clear my throat. "So, how did you and Edmund meet? Did you just meet at the party today?"

I watched as Zia bit her lip in thought, the corners of her mouth twitching to smile. "Well, he met me today." Zia looked up around us as if checking that there was no one else around, before leaning in. "Keep this between you and me, but I've seen him before at the beach."

"When?" I asked curiously.

"Well, his majesty's been sneaking out of the castle in the middle of the night to do some swimming at the beach." Zia dropped her voice low enough so that I could still hear her above the music.

"Really…" I looked up at Edmund across the crowd talking to Peter. "That's interesting."

"Don't tell him I told you that though, I wouldn't want to get into trouble. Breejit's already not in a good mood with me." Zia sighed pointing towards a small red-furred fox playing with two small dryad children.

"Of course I won't tell. It'll be our little secret." I winked at her and tapped the side of my nose. Edmund was slowly make his way back towards us, his face looking warm and pink but I'm not so sure that it's because of the bonfire.

"Um, sorry I've got to go. I think I heard Nina calling me." Zia muttered quietly before rushing off. I didn't even hear her name being called. Edmund frowned as he arrived beside me.

"Is everything alright Alexandra? What's wrong with Zia?" He cast a look after her worriedly. I felt the twinge in my chest for the third time tonight. I shook it off and took a sip.

"She's just going to find the Empress." I replied. His eyes were still searching for Zia despite the way that his body was turned to me. "I heard that the fireflies are going to be putting on a performance sometime soon."

"Oh, that's nice." Edmund mumbled staring down sadly at his goblet of wine. I frowned and let out a sigh.

"Ed, what's wrong?" I asked as Edmund looked up at me.

"What? Nothing's wrong, I'm fine." I raised an eyebrow at him. He sighed and started to walk towards a nearby tree trunk to sit down. I followed him. "I don't know Alexandra. I feel strange."

"Strange how? You haven't been having too much wine, have you?" I glanced warily at his goblet wondering whether I should take it off him.

"No I just…" Edmund shook his head and then turned to me with a strange look in his eye. "What do you think of Zia?"

"Zia?" I replied flatly. He nodded. "Well, I suppose she's a nice girl. Maybe a bit quiet…pretty I guess."

"So you think she's pretty?" A smile suddenly appeared on his face and I became a little worried for reasons I have no idea. "She's a dryad you know."

"I kind of guessed from her dress being made out of leaves." I took a sip of my drink and sat back comfortably against the tree trunk. It was good to be off my feet for once, just relaxing and enjoying myself. _I should do this more often, _I thought to myself.

"But you do think she's pretty?" he pressed.

"Yes, but what has this got to do with me?"

"Nothing, I just wanted your opinion." Edmund spotted Zia talking to another dryad who I couldn't quite see because of the crowd. Edmund had been looking at Zia mostly the whole night and I wasn't sure if he knew if he was doing it or not.

I nudged him in the shoulder. "Go talk to her."

Edmund looked back at me in surprise. "W-what do you mean?"

"Go and ask her for a dance." I stood up and pulled him up with me, brushing down his shoulders to make him look presentable just like what Mrs Pevensie used to do for Mr Pevensie when he was going to do something important.

"But what if she says no?" I rolled my eyes stood behind him and squeezed his shoulders.

"Edmund, you're a king. What's the worst that can happen?"

"She could say no." I heard him mutter. I nudged him on the shoulder to let him know that I heard him.

"Edmund, stop putting yourself down. It's just a dance. Now go, before a faun snatches her up or something." I gave him a gentle push and he nervously stepped forward. He turned back to me with a frown.

"Are you sure you're alright with this?"

"Me? Sure I'm alright, go on! I'm fine, just go!" I grabbed his shoulders, turned him around and shooed him away. This time he kept on walking, stumbling over his feet every so often as he went.

I quickly ran through the crowd looking for the Pevensies before spotting them standing by the bonfire. "Hey, Peter, Susan Lucy!"

They turned to me with a smile and asked if I was alright, but I quickly shushed them. "Never mind that, you should come and see this." I quickly led them to where I was previously stood with Edmund and point towards Ed with Zia. He was staring at the ground and his hands were fumbling in front of him. "Do you still say Edmund can't be charming Pete?"

Suddenly, Zia had taken a hold of Edmund's face and pressed her lips against his. My jaw dropped as the sound of cheers and wolf-whistles erupted in the air followed by a loud applause, alerting the embracing couple to their audience. I could tell that they looked embarrassed as they just stared sheepishly at each other and the ground. I felt like I was in a glass box watching out whilst everyone else interacted with everyone else. They were so loud that it had risen up until it was a din.

"Wow, I didn't think that Edmund had it in him." Peter chuckled clapping along with everyone else.

"Alexandra, are you alright?" Susan asked quietly touching my shoulder. I jumped in surprise and hastily nodded.

"Yes, of course I'm alright." I glanced back at Zia and Edmund holding hands and quickly looked away. "I just didn't expect them to do that."

Susan's eyes lingered on me and she pursed her lips. "Alexandra, are you sure you're alright?"

I gulped and looked away. "Sorry, I…I need to go." I pushed past Susan and walked away. I walked and walked further away from the party, going deeper into the dark woods until I just stopped.

"Milady?"

I blinked and looked all around until I saw a figure standing by a tree. The figure stepped out of the shadows and I gasped. "Ivy, look at you!" Ivy smiled down at her round swollen stomach patting and rubbing it soothingly. She looked huge (not in a nasty way). Slowly she ambled her way over and we slowly sat down. "But…you only had a flat stomach yesterday! This is mad."

"Dryad pregnancies are very much different to humans." She explained but I was still confused. "But enough about me for now, why are you crying?"

"What?" I touched my cheeks to feel them wet and soggy. I had indeed been crying. "I don't know."

"Alexandra, please don't lie to me." Ivy fixed me with a knowing look. I shrugged my shoulders and leaned into Ivy's side laying my head on her stomach hoping to hear her baby. I sniffled and felt Ivy, stroke my hair back out of my face.

"I don't know Ivy. I'm just feeling so confused." I mumbled. I felt the twinge in my chest grow until it filled up my belly. I felt hollow. Alone. "Why do I feel like this?" I looked up at Ivy, wiping my eyes and sniffling pathetically.

"I know why," Ivy replied simply, looking back at me with a pitying troubled look. "You're in love."


	25. Heartache for Edmund

_Hello everyone!_

_Once again I have a lovely chapter for you. I will admit this one is a little short but I'm already working on the next one which is super long hopefully it will be up within the next two – three weeks depending on what homework I get. I will make sure I update for Easter though. That will be a promise. _

_Thank you so much for review the last chapter. I am so happy that you like it. And welcome to the story _**bluenight23**, **supersweet47**, **Clarissa Jackson, IsobelFrances **_and_ **d112hpfan. **_I hope you all enjoy the story and continue to read and review. _

_Here is a sneak preview (and chapter heading) of the next chapter. _

**Susan's got an Admiring Stalker**

"_**Five more minutes Logan..." Edmund grumbled into his pillow as he rolled onto his stomach and tried to wave me away with his hand. **_

"_**Edmund, I'm pretty sure I'm not you're valet. Unless I have remarkably grown horns and a tail during the night," I checked my head for any lumps or bumps and then shrugged. "No, no horns. Wake up Ed!"**_

_So there you go. Think what you like there. Hope you enjoy this chapter. There is a couple of dreams at the beginning which might determine the direction of the next few chapters, and also Alexandra's eventual fate. Mwa ha ha. _

_By the way, If I haven't mentioned it during the chapter because I've forgotten, this chapter is set around three weeks after the Party on the Dancing Lawn. And there are also 49 days left to enter The Unspoken Words of Narnia competition, so best to hurry and get them in._

_Enjoy! _

_**21/03/12 Note to readers** -__I __have finished writing the next chapter but I won't update unless I see ten or more reviews for this chapter. So if you want me to update quickly, start reviewing! :)_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Heartache for Edmund**

_I was leaning against a cold damp stone wall, my arms tied up and aching above my head. My mouth felt like rough papyrus, absent of water for what felt like months. I didn't know how much longer I was going to last. I had been in this cell for so long that I could already smell the horrid stench of my sweat and grime that had crusted all over my skin. I could hear the footsteps echoing down the stone walkway outside of my cell, each step a formidable warning of harm coming my way but I couldn't lift my head. I felt so weak. _

Maybe I should tell him?_ I thought to myself as an almost insane hope of being rewarded food and water and maybe my freedom. I could just tell them and then I could eat and feel better. _

Alexandra, stay strong. I am with you always.

"_Then help me please..." I whimpered as the door to my cell opened with a loud bang._

_The dream suddenly changed in a wisp of smoke and I was now standing in the middle of a battlefield. Narnians and humans were falling to the ground in a raging bloodbath. Scythes and daggers were ripping, tearing, slashing their way through flesh but I could see just one sight before me that made my heart stop. Edmund was locked in a fierce battle with a tall dark skinned soldier but there was another. A soldier raised his crossbow up and aimed it at Edmund. _

_No! I tried to scream at Edmund. Watch out! Duck out of the way! But the words refused to leave my lips. I pushed my legs forward, sweat and blood dripping down my face but I wasn't fast enough. _

_The arrow let loose._

I woke with a gasp to find myself tangled in my nightgown and my sheets, my heart racing in my chest. Was that dream real? I quickly checked myself for injuries anywhere on my body only to find a few scratches from where my fingernails dug in to my skin. I could feel myself shaking as I sighed and got up out of bed, pouring a glass of water sitting my desk but not taking a sip until I was sat on the edge of my windowsill. I opened the window and let in a chilly seaside breeze blow against my sweaty hot face. I noticed that the sun had gone down and the moon had risen out of the sea shining brightly high in the night sky. Twinkling little stars winked down at me as I looked out over the beach and frowned. There was a shadow lying on the sand by a boulder. _What on earth is he still doing there? The stupid fool, _I thought exasperatedly as I pulled on my dressing gown and gathered up some blankets in my arms. I knew why he was there. He had been sneaking out of the castle at night for the past three weeks. Lighting a candle, I exited my chambers quietly, tiptoeing past the other's rooms - hearing light snores coming from Peter's room and a little murmuring from Susan's – and swiftly escaped through the castle gates into the fresh cool night air.

Edmund was lying on his back looking up at the stars by the time I had reached him at the beach, but he didn't look at me. I didn't even think he noticed I was there until I spoke. "Sleeping under the stars are we?"

Edmund didn't look at me. Just patted the sand next to him and continued to stare up at the sky. I laid out one of the blankets in my arms on the sand and sat down next to him, waiting silently for Edmund to speak. In truth I was a little uneasy. It felt like Edmund was bottling everything up again. I felt a nudge in my left arm and I glanced at Ed.

"Well lie down then." I did as he said rolling onto my side to watch him as he grabbed the other blanket I had been carrying and spread it over the top of us. I was acutely aware of how warm his body seemed to be next to mine and I snuggled into the side of him, resting my head on his shoulder and feeling his arm wrap around my waist.

"Are you alright Ed?" I asked worriedly looking up at his face to try and catch some kind of expression in his face. Any expression at all that would reveal so much. I felt his arm tighten around my waist pulling me closer to him. Did he know what he was doing? Could he hear how fast my heart was beating next to his ribs? I didn't dare try to move away for fear of him pulling me closer. I remained as still as I could be.

"Do you know what I've just realised?" Edmund said in a tone that sounded surprised but wasn't really. "When we were younger, we never did sleep under the stars did we?"

"I guess now we are."

"Yeah..." Edmund raised his hand and pointed to a small cluster of stars that sparkled like little fairies. "Those are my favourite. They just seem so vibrant and yet so closed off like you can't touch them in case you get burnt."

I leaned up on my elbow and frowned at him. "Ed, you're worrying me. What happened today? Why didn't you come back inside when it got dark?" I couldn't help but glance at his thin chapped lips, realising that I was close enough to just press my lips against his. I wonder what he would do if I did kiss him. Would he push me away? Would he tense up? Would he kiss me back..?

"Have you been spying on me?" Edmund said amusedly looking up at me with a smirk.

"Just answer the damn questions." I felt my cheeks warm and I thanked Aslan that it was dark enough that Edmund couldn't see me properly.

"Wow, you swore. I always thought Pete was a bad influence."

"_Ed."_ I said sternly kneeling up beside him. I picked up his hand and held it in mine, feeling the rough calluses in his palm. Edmund's smirk fell away from his mouth and he looked down at our hands. "Why won't you tell me what happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it Alexandra. Can't you just leave it at that?" Edmund pulled his hand away from mine and sat up turning his back on me and bowing his head.

"You're upset." I said more like a statement rather than a question. I shuffled around until I was knelt beside him. "I don't like it when you're upset."

"It's none of your business though, is it?" I could hear the irritant tone in Edmund's voice so I sat back a bit to give him some space. We sat there in silence listening to the gentle crashes of the waves against the shore and the rocks. I watched Edmund as he idly dragged his fingers to make little circles in the sand. It was as if he was silently telling me what was wrong without even saying it.

"She didn't turn up again did she?" I quietly said shifting my legs so that I was sat cross legged, half on half off the blanket I had brought. "Zia, she didn't come to the beach."

Edmund shook his head and let out a dry chuckle. "_You're a King Edmund, what's the worst that can happen?"_

I looked down at my hands lying still in my lap and felt my chest strain with hurt. A splash of sand covered my lap and I looked up to see Edmund staring at me with a sad half smile. "Can we have a soppy moment?"

I nodded and almost flew at him, wrapping my arms around his waist and leaning against his side. I felt Edmund hug my shoulders and rest his cheek against the top of my head. "Why do I always get attached to a pretty face?" Edmund picked up a lock of my hair that had a kink in it and twirled it around his fingers.

"It's not your fault." I pressed my forehead closer to the space where his neck met his shoulder, closing my eyes in bliss and imagining indulgently that my lips were kissing his throat. I knew it wasn't proper to think like this and I still wasn't sure about what my feelings were for Edmund exactly but I couldn't help it. I thought to myself that as long as Edmund didn't know what I was really thinking it would be alright.

"A king shouldn't be like this. He should have control of his emotions and not get so upset about a silly girl all the time." Edmund muttered to himself with a sigh.

"We're still growing up Ed. Don't be so harsh on yourself. We don't know everything yet." I spoke calmly as I pulled us both back until we were both leaning back against the boulder behind us. "Besides, it's not as if we had much of a social life when we were teenagers." It was true. When Edmund and I were both sixteen, the council members all agreed that it would be best to give us our responsibilities. These said responsibilities took up almost every aspect of our lives until there was practically no free time left for us to do what we wanted to do.

"I know, but it's just like when..." Edmund trailed off and I looked up at his face.

"Say it."

"No, I don't want to..." Edmund pulled away from me sitting up but I quickly shoved him back and swung my leg over his lap, straddling him as he stared up at me in surprise.

"Say it, Ed. It'll make you feel better I promise." I pressed my hands against his chest, pushing him back against the boulder so that he couldn't move. In the back of my mind I knew that this looked inappropriate and I expected someone to burst from one of the bushes and drag us apart, but instead nothing happened. Apparently, Edmund thought the same thing.

I heard Ed clear his throat uncomfortably staring down at the sand as a pink flush crept up his neck. "Alexandra, you're in your nightgown."

"I don't care. Ed, I just want to hear you say it. Please?" I cupped my hands on Edmund's face and turned his head until he was facing me. He didn't look at me but I didn't mind. Truth be told, if he did look at me I'm sure I would have broken down in a fit of nerves. Edmund mumbled something into my wrist. "Sorry what was that?"

"Please don't make me say it, Alexandra." Edmund whined bowing his head. He looked so vulnerable in that moment and for a second I thought that I should give in and let him make him confess but in the end I tilted his head up and peered into his eyes.

"Please Edmund. For me?" I pleaded.

Edmund remained silent and stared at what seemed to be my nose judging from the angle of his pupils, and I felt glad that Edmund was such a gentlemen. But finally he spoke so quietly that I had to lean forward a bit to hear him. "It was just like when I was tricked by the White Witch."

I smiled at him and kissed his forehead in gratitude that he had finally said it. "Do you feel better now?"

"No."

"You will. Now, you've got someone to talk to about it." I pulled him into a hug and held him to my chest. "It's always good to talk to someone about something that's troubling you. You taught me that."

"Why are you up this late?" Edmund suddenly asked, pulling out of my hug and looking up at me. I suddenly realised that Edmund's hands had been holding my waist and had been for some time. I could feel a slight flush rise up my cheeks.

"I had a nightmare. Two actually," I confessed. Edmund stared up at me in alarm and I felt his hands tighten on my waist.

"What were they about?" He asked worriedly.

I tried to remember what I had dreamt about but I shook my head in defeat. "I'm not sure, but they were really bad." I whispered. Edmund reached up and tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. "Ed I think they're going to happen soon."

"What do you mean?" There was a crease between Edmund's eyebrows as he frowned confusedly.

"I think my dreams are going to come true."

"We won't let that happen." Edmund said fiercely shaking his head in defiance.

"I don't think we have a choice Ed." I sat back and tried to fight of a yawn. All around us I could see the sand growing pink in the light rising in the sky. "But never mind that now. It's nearly morning. Are you coming back inside?"

Edmund sighed reluctantly and nodded as I shuffled myself off him and stood up brushing the sand off of my nightgown. "I'll come back inside," Edmund said as he got up and picked up a blanket from the sand. "...as long as you cover up a bit."

A hot pink blush coloured my cheeks as Edmund wrapped the blanket around me, covering me up to my chin. "Sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you."

"I'm not embarrassed." Edmund chuckled. "I'm just more concerned of the guards seeing you like this, this early in the morning. They might get hopeful."

I shoved him in the chest in disgust, despite the grin on my face. And with that Edmund, picked up the second blanket and we trudged our way back up to the castle. My heart felt lighter than I could ever remember it being before. I felt so light and giddy, that when we reached Edmund's chambers I just went straight through with him and we both ended up flopping on Edmund's bed, falling fast asleep with our hands almost touching on the mattress.


	26. Susan's got an Admiring Stalker

_Hello!_

_This is a quicker update than I expected (considering the last one was last week. But I managed to finish this chapter a couple of days after I updated, and I've already finished the next one. I've decided that until I have finished the chapter after the next one I will only update one. _

_Welcome to the story **Melonberry** I hope you enjoy the story and continue to review. Everyone please review this chapter, I'd like to know how many people I have reading my story. I have another sneak preview of the next chapter and of course the chapter headline. (Not sure how it's spelt by the way so bear with me.)_

**Tensions on the Splendour Hyaline.**

**_Edmund grabbed my wrist and swung his arm in a tight loop, thrusting his sword underneath my arm, and knocking my attacking arm down until it was pointing to the deck before he batted my back with the side of his sword. Another round of 'oohs' and 'aahs' sounded from the crowds as I glared at Edmund. He smiled cheerily back at me and swiftly tugged me forward, looping his arm over my head and shoulders until I was trapped with my back against him. He batted my stomach with his sword and I could hear him struggling not to laugh in my ear._**

**_"I really do hate you sometimes, you know that?" I muttered turning my head to face him. I felt a little flutter in my chest as I realised how close I was to him. His cheek was so close to my lips..._**

_**"Aw, I thought you loved me." He replied teasingly. A bubble of anger simmered in my chest. I stamped my heel on his foot, dug my elbow into his ribs, grabbed hold of his arm and twisted away from him, slicing my Sae against his chest as I went. Edmund hissed and rubbed his chest as I let go of his wrist.** _

_There you go. Alightly longer teaser but apart from that you can think what you like there. :) _

_Please leave a review telling me what you think and also what you think is going to happen. I'm interested in what your theories are. Also, during this chapter is another clue as to why the Pevensies are being so secretive..._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Susan's got an admiring stalker**

The next morning, I woke with a pleasant surprise next to Edmund sleeping close to me. One of his hands was resting on my hip and I found my hand gripping his shirt. I was glad to know that we were still fully clothed (although my nightgown had now slipped up my thighs so that a lot of my legs were on show). I looked up at Edmund's face and noticed his hair lying in front of his eyes. _He could do with a haircut,_ I mused wondering what Mrs Pevensie would say about Edmund's untidy appearance. I pressed my face into his chest smelling the scent of pine and earth on his skin and also the distinct smell of the beach. I suddenly remembered what had happened last night at the shore and decided to make it up to him. I smiled as I had an idea.

I felt Edmund's hand move up my back, pulling me closer to him until both of our bodies were pressed together. I sighed and pushed away from him, shaking his shoulder as I sat up. "Wake up Ed. Come on it's time to get up."

"Five more minutes Logan..." Edmund grumbled into his pillow as he rolled onto his stomach and tried to wave me away with his hand.

"Edmund, I'm pretty sure I'm not you're valet. Unless I've remarkably grown horns and a tail during the night," I checked my head for any lumps or bumps and then shrugged. "No, no horns. Wake up Ed!"

Edmund jumped and lifted his head sleepily and peered at me through his eyelashes. "Alexandra, what are you doing in my chambers?"

I rolled my eyes and stood up, stretching out my arms and legs. "I'm going to run you a bath and then once you're clean I'm going to give you a shave, because frankly you should leave the growing-a-beard idea to Peter."

"But it's dawn Alexandra! Are you mad?" Edmund called as I left him to wake up on his own and walked into his adjoining bathroom. There was a huge boiling pot of water left over a fireplace where the fire had fizzled down to small orange embers. I picked up some bellow pipes and stoked up the embers until there were a few flames boiling the water. I gathered up some towels, placed one on the floor beside the golden bathtub, and one hanging on a railing next to it, smoothing it out until there was no creases. Satisfied with my work on the towel, I poured the water, now boiling hot into the bathtub, quickly arranged some soaps and shampoos next to the bathtub and went to fetch Edmund.

He had finally managed to get out of bed and he walked past me with a grumble, rubbing his eyes like an incessant toddler. The door closed shut and I slipped out of his chambers to go and get dressed. No one saw me as I made my way back to Edmund's room, dressed in my usual grey matron dress, tying my nearly white pinafore over the top and then tying my hair up in a messy bun, and for that I was glad. I was certainly not willing to explain why I was going into Edmund's room this early in the morning, or in fact why I had slept in his chambers in the first place. I just wanted a pleasant morning.

By the time I got back to Edmund's chambers Edmund was already dressed in some dark trousers, a loose baggy cotton white shirt and he was towel drying his hair. I smiled at him and walked over to his dresser and picked up a small bowl and busied myself making some shaving foam. I used to make my father some when he was home and then I'd paint it all over his face, (some of it even getting on his eyebrows because I had thought they were furry caterpillars). It was one of the activities that I did with my father that always put a smile on his face.

"What are you doing?" Edmund asked bemusedly, as I sharpened his razor blade and wiped it clean.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm preparing to cut your throat." I waved the blade jokingly at him with a grin to which Edmund rolled his eyes.

"No, I meant why are you doing it?" I gestured for Edmund to sit down as I leaned against the table. "You don't have to, you know. I can do it myself."

"I know." I said seriously as Edmund sat down in his chair and leant back. "I want to though." I picked up the lathering brush and the bowl of shaving foam and swiped some across his cheek.

"Why are you so happy this morning? You're not unwell are you?" Edmund narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously. I splurged another load of shaving foam on his other cheek and smoothed it along his jaw, Edmund moving his head so that I could get underneath his chin.

"No, I just can't find a reason to be upset this morning." I shrugged and put down the bowl, opening up the blade and peered at it in the light coming in from Edmund's balcony door.

Edmund pursed his lips at me in a thoughtful manner. "You don't have to try so hard to cheer me up all the time y'know. If I'm in one of my moods, just tell me and I'll stop."

"No you bloody won't." I carefully dragged the blade along the side of Edmund's jaw, leaving behind clean smooth skin. "You're the grumpiest sod I have ever met."

"Twice in twenty-four hours. Wow, that's a new record." Edmund grinned cheekily at me.

"Oops, missed a bit." I grabbed the brush and playfully dabbed some foam on the tip of Edmund's nose. Edmund sighed and gave me a look. "What? You have a hairy nose, I can't help it."

"I do not! I think I'm going to need a better barber." Edmund chuckled and wiped his nose.

"All because you have a hairy nose..?"

"No, because you're making fun of a King, I could get you beheaded if I wanted."

"You wouldn't."

"I would."

"Oh Edmund, I feel so hurt." I clamped a hand over my heart and pretended I was going to faint. "For shame! Must I be punished because of a King's secret?"

"Oh lord, give it a rest." Edmund rolled his eyes and shielded his face in embarrassment. I still saw the hint of a smile underneath his hand.

"I must warn Logan. Who knows when your tyranny will end? How many more must die because of your hairy secret?" I set off at a sprint towards the door, hearing a clatter on the floor behind me.

"Come here!" Edmund called grabbing me around my waist and spinning me around, tickling my sides and making me laugh.

"Alright, alright! I yield!" I giggled trying to make him stop. Eventually he didn't stop and I managed to stop laughing and get my breathing back, letting out an occasional giggle every now and then. "You know I was only joking, you really don't have a hairy nose."

"I never would have guessed." He replied sarcastically. "I think I'd better finish off." He held out his hand for the razor when I noticed something red on his face.

"Whoops. I think I accidently cut your nose. Sorry." I said guiltily handing him the blade. Edmund wiped the blood from the side of his nose.

"No worries, it's just a scratch." He walked in front of a mirror on the wall as I sat down on his bed. I watched his reflection in the mirror as he shaved and then I let my eyes travel down his back. His shirt looked a bit ruffled now but that was easy to straighten out. I watched as the muscles in Edmund's back moved underneath the fabric and I bit my lip. "What are you staring at?"

"Nothing." I hastily looked away, embarrassed that I had been caught. Hopefully he wouldn't think too much of it.

"I think you have some foam on your face. Better get cleaned up." Edmund wiped his face with a towel from his dresser and then chucked it at me. It landed like a scarf around my shoulders.

"Thanks." I said sarcastically as Ed shot a grin back at me and then ducked behind the changing screen in the corner of his room. I walked up to the mirror and searched for the shaving foam on my face, only to find it on my hairline just above my left eyebrow. I wiped it clean away and stared at my reflection with a frown. There was a scar just on the edge of my hair line that looked like it had been there for years. It wasn't a light pink like the fading scars I had from the Battle of Beruna; it looked the same colour as my skin. "Edmund,"

"Yes?" he called back peering around the side of the screen.

"Where did I get this scar?" I felt really uneasy by it. I had never seen it before. Nor do I remember even getting it.

"What scar?" Edmund appeared around the screen wearing a navy blue tunic. He was fiddling with the cuffs on his sleeves until he just gave up on them and then rolled up his sleeves.

"This one on my hairline, look." I pointed to the scar and Edmund peered closely at it.

"Oh that scar! That's always been there." Edmund waved a hand.

"Really? How did I get it?"

"You fell down the stairs and hit your head a couple of months before our fathers left for the war. You were in hospital for two days." I blinked and stared at Edmund in surprise. I felt troubled by the mention of this accident. Was it really true?

I frowned. "I don't remember the accident."

Edmund gulped. "You hit your head pretty hard."

"But -"

"Never mind that now. Let's go to breakfast." Edmund grasped my elbow and tugged me towards the door. I pulled my arm from his grasp.

"What are you hiding from me Ed?" I demanded narrowing my eyes at him.

"Nothing, I'm not hiding anything. I just find it hard to remember it that's all." Edmund answered sadly. He didn't look up at me and I felt something deep inside my chest.

"Why?" I felt a hope that he would say something secret to me. Something so precious to him that he didn't dare speak to anyone else about it, but he trusted me with his burden and only me.

"I thought you were going to die. Silly I know, but it felt horrible. You didn't wake up at all when we visited you." Edmund looked up at me and took my hand. "But now you're alive and all you have is a scar. That's all. No need to worry about it. You're better now."

"But I can't remember the accident. What if there's other things I can't remember?" I protested staring up at him defiantly.

"Well, then you'll remember them in time. There is nothing to worry about. Come on, don't spoil our morning. Just let it go." Edmund tugged on my hand and led me out of his chambers door.

"I will find out what you're hiding from me." I pointed a finger at him threateningly. "This isn't over Ed."

"I know."

* * *

Once everyone had come down for breakfast it was quite a lovely morning. The Pevensies and I were all sat down at our table as all manners of breakfast items was laid out in front of us. There was fruit, cereal, toast and porridge for the healthy options (and mostly for me since I'm a vegetarian) and there were sausages, bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes and all sorts of other unhealthy foods were there too. Lucy had picked up a blueberry muffin and she was already picking bits off into smaller pieces with her fingers, whilst Susan scolded her to sit up straight and stop eating with her fingers. (Susan was buttering a piece of toast and cracking a half-boiled egg so I'm not so sure why she was telling Lucy off.) Peter and Edmund took the usual fry up although Peter had a bit more tomatoes than mushrooms, whereas Edmund had a bit more of everything.

Conversation was slow as everyone started to wake up but eventually the main topic of the day had switched from the Summer Solstice party three weeks ago to Susan and her marriage proposals.

"Have you still not decided who you're going to consider marrying Susan? It's been what...three months? You've got to have chosen by now." Edmund sighed spearing a sausage with his fork before roughly cutting it up with his knife.

"Well, it's so hard to choose. They all seem like terribly lovely men." Susan replied before taking a dainty sip of her orange juice. "And I must say all of them are terribly handsome too." Susan emphasised the 'terribly' as if they were all good attributes to a good husband. I, on the other hand, couldn't disagree with her more.

"And I'm sure they're all _terribly_ polite and _terribly _educated and _terribly _self-assured too." Lucy snickered into her napkin before she drank some water.

"Lucy!" Susan scolded her, her eyes wide and shocked at her little sister's outburst.

Lucy rolled her eyes and tucked a lock of mousy-brown hair behind her ear. "Oh come on Sue. You know I'm telling them the truth. Show them the letter."

"What letter?" Peter asked curiously with a frown.

"Two weeks ago, I received a letter from one Prince Rabadash, inviting me to stay for a short period of time at the Tisroc's palace in Calormen." Susan said, sitting up straighter in her chair.

"Why wasn't I told any of this?" Peter raised an eyebrow and set down his cup of coffee beside his plate. From the corner of my eye I could see Edmund looking up at Susan curiously.

"Susan thought if she kept it a secret she could go." Lucy piped up with a grin. There was a loud bang and Lucy let out a yelp and shot a glare at Susan.

"_No,_ you were too busy negotiating with the giants. I didn't want to bother you with this too." Susan said concerned. "Besides, I'm old enough to make my own decisions."

"I know Sue, but it's nice to be kept in the loop so I won't have to worry about you." The doors opened as a faun walked in carrying a silver tray full of envelopes. The faun walked all the way around the table until he reached Peter, who picked up the letters and sorted through them. "Ah, Susan you have a letter here. Oh, with the royal seal of the Tisroc too."

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear..." I muttered under my breath to Edmund. Edmund rolled his eyes and took a sip of tea.

"Oh, I have a letter from King Lune too. That's good." Peter announced slicing open his letter with a silver knife and unfolded the envelope's contents.

"So, can I go?" Susan spoke up hopefully.

Peter sighed. "If you must, but take Edmund as your escort. I'm not having you wandering around a foreign country on your own."

"Alexandra can come too. It'll be good to get her away from that library." Edmund suggested. I gave him a withering look.

"Oh ha, ha, Ed. Don't you know? You can take the girl out of the library, but you can never take the library out of the girl. I'll just take some books with me."

"I worry about you sometimes." Edmund said shaking his head and taking another swig of his tea. "You have a seriously unhealthy obsession with books."

"You know, I could say the same about you and your sword." I grinned at him as Lucy burst into a fit of giggles.

"Cut it out you two." Peter sighed, his eyes not even looking up from his letter. "Honestly, we're trying to have breakfast here."

"I only meant it in a literal sense, Peter." I smirked, eating a spoonful of porridge. I had remembered an old recipe that put cinnamon inside the porridge and sugar sprinkled on top. It was absolutely lovely but I can't remember where I got the recipe from.

"Oh, I've just remembered." Peter gasped, finally tearing his eyes away from the letter and looking at me and Edmund. "Prince Corin is coming to stay with us for a few weeks to teach him about diplomacy and I've said that he would be put under your responsibility Edmund."

I heard a loud splutter coming from Edmund as he slammed his cup of tea on the table in shock. "What! How could you not tell me? Why is he my responsibility?"

"He's not just your responsibility Ed. He's Alexandra's as well. I told King Lune that you would look after him while he stays here."

"Why can't you look after him?" Edmund whined. "Corin is a nightmare! And how are we going to keep an eye on him if we're in Calormen?"

"Use your common sense Ed. You can take him with you. I can't look after him because I'm not going to be here." Peter said tiredly.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked worriedly.

"The negotiations with the giants aren't going too well. I'm afraid it might lead to battle."

"Oh no. Would you need help then?" I asked.

"No, it should only be a small skirmish, nothing too serious." Peter waved his hand in a gesture that the conversation was over. "Now Ed I want you to promise that –

Suddenly the doors flew open as a young blonde girl staggered into the hall. "Your Majesty! Your Majesty! I have an urgent message for you!" the young girl gasped as she slowed to where Peter was seated.

"Well then speak, child." Peter turned his attention to the girl as a serious expression appeared on his face.

"It's Ivy, Your Majesty. She's asked to see Lady Alexandra. It's very urgent." The young girl gasped. I sat up worriedly.

"What is it? What's wrong with Ivy?" I asked anxiously.

"She's having her baby your Ladyship and she's asked for you there. She went into labour just an hour ago."

I gasped and hurriedly stood up, weaving around my chair. "I'm sorry Peter, I must go."

"Don't worry. We'll be right behind you. Edmund, go with her. Guards, prepare the horses immediately!" Peter called to the guards stood at the door. I picked up my skirt and ran out of the hall with Edmund closely following behind me.

"Edmund, she's having her baby! Ivy's having her baby!" I cheered as we ran out of the castle towards the stables where the Pevensie's horses were already being saddled.

"I was there Alexandra, I do know. Now come on."

Edmund reached his horse (not a Talking Horse like Phillip as he was only allowed to be ridden on if we were going to war) and swung himself into the saddle, before reaching down and helping me on behind him. I had only just enough time to grab hold of Edmund's waist before he kicked the horse into a gallop.

We galloped as fast as we could along the fields and the paths until we had reached the Dancing Lawn. I hadn't been back to the Dancing Lawn since the Summer Solstice. I dismounted Edmund's horse and hurried along into the forest looking for any signs of Ivy. Edmund caught up to me quickly after he had tied his horse to a tree to keep him from wandering off. "Alexandra, hold up."

"I've got to find Ivy."

"You're going the wrong way." Edmund groaned. I stopped and whirled around to face him.

"How would you know if I'm going the wrong way?" I asked stubbornly. Ed rolled his eyes and started east.

"This is the Western Woods isn't it, so it's part of the territory I have to cover on my patrols. I know these woods like the back of my hand." Edmund called over his shoulder as he trudged along. "Now come along, this way." I huffed and followed behind him wishing he would hurry up. What if Ivy had given birth by now? We would've missed it.

Soon enough I began to see a large group of dryads gathered together up ahead. Edmund had a smug look on his face. "I told you I know these woods."

"Oh shut up." I jogged ahead of Edmund until I reached the crowd, searching for anyone I recognised. I spotted a tall dark haired figure in the middle of the crowd leaning next to a tree and smiled. "Falstaff! Over here! Falstaff!"

Falstaff looked up and a look of relief spread across his face. "Alright, let them through. They're with us." The huge crowd of dryads split across the middle like a parting of waves and I hurried with Edmund towards the middle. I smiled at the sight I saw.

Ivy was smiling tiredly leaning back against her tree holding a small round-faced baby wrapped in leaves and moss. Falstaff was knelt down beside her with an arm wrapped around her shoulders smiling widely as I knelt down beside Ivy quietly and cooed at the little baby in her arms. "Ivy, she's so sweet. What's her name?"

"It's a he actually. We've decided on a name." Ivy yawned as she nudged a piece of moss out of the way of the baby's face. The little boy was squinting his eyes in the bright light as he snuggled into his mother's bosom. I heard Edmund kneel down behind me and peer over my shoulder. Ivy and Falstaff looked at each other with a smile and then Ivy turned to me. "We've called him Oreius."

I was speechless. It was a perfect name but I could find a way to explain how happy I felt for them. I felt Edmund place a hand on my shoulder and he gave it a gentle squeeze. "That's a wonderful name. Oreius Senior would be proud."

Ivy beamed happily at us and glanced at Falstaff again. Falstaff nodded and kissed her forehead. It was the first time I had ever seen them openly express how they felt about each other. It was so lovely to watch and I couldn't help but smile at them. "Um, we were wondering – that is if you want to, I mean you don't have to but it would be an honour – if you and Edmund, would be Oreius' godparents."

I was once again speechless and this time so was Edmund. This was not something we had expected at all. I glanced at Edmund to see him staring at Ivy with his mouth open in an 'O' shape. I turned back to Ivy and spluttered, trying to come up with something to say. "I...Ivy it's...Ivy, Edmund and I aren't even courting."

"We know. It's just you two have such a strong relationship between you that we thought that you two were the perfect choice."

I turned to Edmund and raised my eyebrow asking him silently what he thought. Edmund tipped his head to the side with a smirk and shrugged his shoulders. He let out a sigh and turned to Ivy and Falstaff. "Why not, yes. We'd be honoured." I grinned at the happy couple as happy cheers and celebrations erupted from the crowd around us.

"Would you like to hold him?" Ivy whispered in my ear. I nodded and sat down, holding out my arms as Ivy carefully placed Oreius into my arms. He felt so warm and I felt my heart swell at the sight of him. He looked so sweet. He had little tufts of dark hair and bright moss green eyes. Edmund smiled down at Oreius beside me and leant his head against mine. Oreius waggled his little arms and legs at us as if he was saying hello and Edmund waved back at him.

Ivy tapped on Edmund's arm and he looked up. "Edmund, Zia wanted me to tell you that's she's sorry she couldn't come to the beach. You see Nina died just recently and she's been grieving."

"Oh, I didn't know. I'm sorry for your loss. I knew she was a good Empress." Edmund apologised sadly. Ivy nodded in return.

"Thank you, we're in the middle of finding a new Empress at the moment and Zia's supposed to be next in line unless another clan leader opposes her, so Zia's been a bit busy. She hopes that you weren't too upset by her absence." I felt a lump in my throat as I remembered last night. I looked at Edmund out of the corner of my eye.

"It's fine. Tell her I forgive her and also good luck." Edmund replied graciously and Ivy nodded. I gave Oreius back to Ivy with a smile and Edmund and I decided to give the new parents some peace and quiet. As we walked back towards Edmund's horse, Ed was quiet.

"Do you regret kissing Zia?" I asked out of the blue. I didn't know what made me ask this. It wasn't any of my business really, but I wanted to know so that it would calm my mind. Edmund looked at me and held out his hand. I took it. This was usually what we always did and had done this kind of thing for so many years I had lost count. The gestures we made to each other didn't mean anything other than what they were. But now, I felt like there was something else there, something that had always been there but I hadn't really noticed it until now. Or maybe it was just me.

"No of course I don't. She was pretty yes, but now that I think about it I didn't really know much about her. She was just a flying fancy I suppose." Edmund shrugged his shoulders and squeezed my hand. In the distance I could hear the sound of galloping horse as Peter, Susan, Lucy and Mr Tumnus rode closer and closer to us. "Oh well, life goes on as they say."

When the other Pevensies arrived to hear the news of baby Oreius and of Edmund and I becoming Oreius' godparents, Peter decided to throw a celebration back at the Cair for anyone who wanted to come. But all the way through Peter's speech to the dryads I didn't let go of Edmund's hand.


	27. Tensions on the Splendour Hyaline

**_Hello!_**

**_First of all, Happy Easter! I hope everyone's going to be happily sick with chocolate eggs. I know I will. Hopefully this Easter present won't be making you want to throw up. :D_**

**_Thank you so much for those who read the last chapter. Your reviews make writing this story worth it. No new reviewers at the moment but I'm still hoping to see some new people. By the way the Unspoken Words of Narnia competition is fast approaching the deadline so please, please enter in your stories. Firefly.1212 and I promise we won't be mean and evil._**

**_I have another sneak preview for you with dear little Corin and of course the chapter heading._**

**_We're Taken on a Creepy tour of Calormen_**

"**_Where did you two go? Not off to fight some more were you?" Corin asked mischievously. Edmund shot a glare at the young teenager.  
_**"**_Watch your tone, young man." He barked, pointing at Corin with a threatening finger. I sighed and squeezed Edmund's arm.  
_**"**_Or what?" Corin replied defiantly to which stepped forward, a burning furious glare on his face. I held on tightly to Edmund's arm to stop him reaching Corin.  
_**"**_Relax..." I whispered in his ear.  
Sir Peridan cuffed Corin on the back of his head. "Or we'll put you in the stockades for the peasants to throw rotten food at."  
_**"**_You wouldn't." Corin said fearfully.  
_**"**_Don't tempt me." Edmund growled._**

**_So there you go. What do you think? Let me know I absolutely love to hear from you. Hope you enjoy this chapter, things are going to get a little bit tense. :D Excuse the pun. Enjoy!_**

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Tensions on the Splendour Hyaline**

"Great. Two weeks of babysitting a nightmare in a hot, stuffy country. Hardly a holiday is it?"

"Oh lighten up Ed. At least we're actually going somewhere. Just think of Lucy and try to ignore the heat." I nudged Ed in his side as we watched the water over the edge of the ship. Edmund grumbled and put his head on his hand once more. Lucy had been left behind to take care of things at the Cair. Peter wasn't too happy about it but Ivy and Falstaff had offered to help Lucy if ever the need was required. Not that I was too happy about _that _either because they were still getting used to being parents.

"Why did we have to bring Corin along? I mean how are we going to keep an eye on him, Susan _and_ Rabadash at the same time?" Edmund stood up and started walking to the stairs that would take us to the main deck of the ship. We had been on board the _Splendour Hyaline_ for almost half a day, judging from what the captain said earlier when we were in the map room. All the way through that time Edmund had grumbled about Corin causing mischief and always disappearing whenever Edmund wanted to teach him something useful. To be honest, I wasn't too bothered by Corin. Edmund on the other hand was turning into a grumpy nuisance and was getting on my nerves.

"Grow extra pairs of eyes?" I suggested with a shrug. Edmund shot me a withering look. "Oh come on, Grumpy Guts. I was only joking. Why don't you go and have a sparring session with Sir Peridan whilst I go and find Corin?"

"He's already had a sparring session with me and plus he has other commitments." Edmund replied over his shoulder as we descended down the steps.

"Well, ask someone else then." I suggested. _Honestly, boys! Do they even have brains?_ I thought to myself.

"How about I ask you then?" Edmund turned around to face me with a smirk. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"You know, when I said 'ask someone else' I wasn't offering myself as an opponent." Edmund leapt up the steps until he was right in front of me.

"Oh come on, it'll be fun! Besides, don't you need the practice?" Edmund's smirk seemed to grow wider into a grin and I found myself loathing it.

"You've been talking to Falstaff about me again haven't you?"

"No, I can always tell how well your training sessions go by the amount of bruises on your face." Edmund grinned and I pushed past him standing in the middle of the deck beside the mast. I took out my Sais and rolled my wrists, stretching and shaking out my limbs. I noticed some of the crew gathering around the edges of the ship waiting for the match to start. I inwardly groaned. _Great, now I've got an audience. I'm going to be a flipping comedy act! _

"Fine, but use the small sword to make it fairer. Oh and if I win you're on Corin duty tonight." I watched as Susan appeared out of the cabin with Corin with a _here-we-go-again_ look on her face. Edmund shrugged his shoulders with a smirk and swapped his sword for a smaller one which reminded me of the ancient Greek swords that Heracles and Perseus would have used in battles. I was really starting to hate the way Ed always shrugged his shoulders too.

Edmund stepped into a fighting stance with one arm held behind his back and I dropped into my own, watching Edmund carefully to see what he would do first. His eyes seemed to be mocking me, goading me into making the first move but I wasn't going to react no matter how much I wanted to. I stepped slowly to the side and Ed followed in the opposite direction until we were circling each other. It went on for what seemed like hours before Edmund finally lunged forward to strike. I narrowly dodged out of the way of his blade as it came searing towards my left side, but I did feel it knick my dress. "Hey! Go easy there. You know I'm not that good."

"You could easily have deflected that. Don't be such a scaredy cat." Edmund sneered.

"Ha! That's rich coming from you. Exactly how scared were you when we were facing that werewolf back when we were fifteen? Who's scared of the big bad wolf huh?" I sneered back smacking the side of his sword as Ed lunged forward again. Edmund straightened up and stared at me with a bemused look on his face.

"Er, you are." I heard a few snickers coming from the crowd around us and I narrowed my eyes at Ed.

"Oh shut up." I lunged forward suddenly batting away his sword with one Sae before striking his side with my other one. Ed barely had any time to react, which I was glad to know. A small modest smile appeared on his face as he tipped his head to me, deciding to give me that point. A few 'oohs' sounded from the crowd and I heard Corin give a delighted cheer as he watched from Susan's side.

Edmund grabbed my wrist and swung his arm in a tight loop, thrusting his sword underneath my arm, and knocking my attacking arm down until it was pointing to the deck before he batted my back with the side of his sword. Another round of 'oohs' and 'aahs' sounded from the crowds as I glared at Edmund. He smiled cheerily back at me and swiftly tugged me forward, looping his arm over my head and shoulders until I was trapped with my back against him. He batted my stomach with his sword and I could hear him struggling not to laugh in my ear.

"I really do hate you sometimes, you know that?" I muttered turning my head to face him. I felt a little flutter in my chest as I realised how close I was to him. His cheek was so close to my lips…

"Aw, I thought you loved me." He replied teasingly. A bubble of anger simmered in my chest. I stamped my heel on his foot, dug my elbow into his ribs, grabbed hold of his arm and twisted away from him, slicing my Sae against his chest as I went. Edmund hissed and rubbed his chest as I let go of his wrist. "Okay, I'll give you that one too."

"Shut up and stop going bloody easy on me." I snapped at him gripping my Sais tighter in my hands and every inch of me bristling with anger.

"Fine, have it your way." Edmund lunged forward swinging his sword overhead and I backed up, raising my Sais to drag his sword down into a wooden barrel beside me. I staggered away trying to catch my breath. Edmund tugged it out within a second and turned on me sweeping it across my stomach. I heard a tear and looked down to see a rip right across my stomach. I glared at Edmund lunging forward and bringing my Sais down on his head. Edmund blocked my attack easily holding my arms up. His face was so close to mine but I had no desire to kiss him this time. I just wanted to smack his face off. Edmund tipped us to the side in a bid to unbalance me and make me let go but in the end we fell, still locked together and rolled over each other, crashing into a crate by the mast. I groaned in pain as I knelt up from the pieces of wood and rusty nails. Susan and Sir Peridan, one of the knights from the Lone Islands, appeared over us and promptly separated us. I still wanted to fight Edmund but Susan held me back.

"Alex, Edmund that's enough. Both of you take a deep breath and calm down. You're going to hurt yourselves if you're not careful." Susan spoke as Edmund stood up.

"Don't call me Alex." I spat before shrugging Susan off and storming away into the cabin where my sleeping quarters were. Corin stepped away from me as I brushed past him, a wary look of fear on his face. I should've felt guilty then but I was too angry at Edmund.

I opened the door to my quarters that I shared with Susan and slammed it shut with a loud bang. I chucked my Sais on my table along with my belt before throwing myself on my bed. Hot angry tears spilled from my eyes and I willed myself to calm down but it wouldn't work. How _dare_ he? How dare he tease me like that?

"_Aw, I thought you loved me." _

I wanted to slap him. I wanted to hit him so hard that he has a bruise on his face for weeks. I wanted to punish him for making a fool out of me. I sat up and angrily wiped my tears, roughly rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand. How could he do that?

_It's not like he knew how you felt about him._ I heard my grandmother's voice say reasonably. I argued back that I didn't feel like _that _about him but it somehow felt like a flimsy argument. But still how dare he?

There was a knock at the door and I shot a glare at it. "Go away!"

The door opened anyway and I grabbed a pillow and flung it at the door. I stood up and paced on the floor as the door continued to open. "Um...Lady Alexandra?"

I turned to see Corin standing sheepishly poking his head through the door. Corin had light hair, very much like Peter's but maybe a bit darker toned and he had very light green eyes and tanned skin. He was around Lucy's age, maybe a bit younger at fourteen or fifteen with a bit of baby fat left around his face but he was tall and broad shouldered with a strong build due to many years of boxing tournaments. It was strange to see such a tall person other than Peter and Edmund. Corin was a just up to my shoulders but that didn't mean much. I was quite short. He still had a high voice as he spoke making me think he wasn't as mature as he looked just yet. "What is it, Corin?"

"I was wondering if you were okay. You looked a bit angry."

"Thank you for your concern Corin but I'm fine." I turned away hoping that he would leave me alone.

"That was a brilliant match, your ladyship. It was a shame it got cut short really." I let out a slow breath, hoping that I could start calming down now that I was far away from Edmund. "I um...I was wondering if you could teach me that move. You know the one where you twisted out of King Edmund's grip."

I turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. "Really?"

"Yes it was brilliant! It would be great if I could adapt it for boxing." Corin was beaming with excitement. I was a little bemused by him at first but then I decided to humour him. I nodded and watched as he walked up to me. The move was simple enough I suppose but I wasn't a very good teacher. It always seemed so complicated each time we tried it. I didn't think of Edmund though which was good.

"I think we'll have to try this another time." I sighed as Corin disentangled himself from my arms.

"I can do it, I know I can." Corin muttered fiercely in frustration.

"I know. I just think we should continue this another time. I'm feeling really tired." I said feeling a yawn about to show itself. Corin nodded and smiled at me.

"I'll see you later then. Thanks for the lesson." Corin headed out of my chambers waving back at me as he went. I let out a breath of relief and let myself relax. I reached behind me and began to untie the strings of my dress. I wasn't in my usual matron dress as this was a diplomatic visit, so I was wearing my favourite dark blue dress that I had gotten from Susan for my birthday. I wish now that I didn't wear it, looking down at the gash across the middle. I felt the back loosen and I began to pull the dress off until I was stood in a very thin shift. I picked up the dress wondering whether I'd be able to sew it back together when I suddenly heard a cough behind me. I turned my head and gasped, trying to covering myself as much as possible.

"Edmund, what do you think you're doing? Get out!" I yelled at him as I ducked behind a changing screen at the end of my bed.

"Sorry! I didn't realise you were changing." I peered over the top of the screen to see Edmund's back face me as he covered his eyes.

"Well, considering you ruined my other dress what else was I going to do?" I said scathingly looking around to see if there was another dress nearby. There wasn't. "_Shoot_!"

"What is it?" Edmund asked warily, turning his head around.

"Don't peek!" I ordered him and Edmund immediately covered his eyes. "I want you to just go over to my wardrobe and I want you to grab any dress and give it to me. Don't ask any stupid questions. I'm not in the mood."

"I kind of gathered that." Edmund muttered as he slowly made his way over to my wardrobe, throwing open the doors and grabbing a long burgundy dress that Susan insisted that I take with me. Edmund held it up cautiously trying not to step on it and put it over the top of the screen. I quickly snatched it and tugged it on as fast as I could. It was a snug fit, which I'm assuming was the point of the dress as it tucked all of my lumps and bumps into place. The only problem was the back. The ties were all crisscrossed like a corset and needed another person to help tighten them up. But I certainly wasn't going to let Edmund do that. Not whilst I was still mad at him anyway.

"Are you alright? I didn't mean to make you angry you know. I was only teasing." Edmund said sheepishly as I heard him sit on the edge of my bed.

"Well you took it too far." I struggled to tighten a few of the strings on my dress, my fingers slipping or getting caught in the ties.

"How? What did I do?"

"You...you just..." I fell silent suddenly feeling my anger fading away. I heard a squeak come from my bed and Edmund's footsteps as he stepped close on the other side of the screen.

"You can tell me you know, I won't judge. You know I won't." He sounded so close. I wonder if I pressed my hand against the screen, would he press his hand against mine too. I shook my head of the thought stubbornly.

"Because you're so '_Just_'," I said sarcastically.

"No, because you're my friend... if there's something you feel you can't tell me then I just want you to know that you can trust me with anything." Edmund said sincerely.

Could I really trust him with _anything_? Could I really trust him with my deepest darkest fear? One part of me was screaming '_Yes, you foolish girl, yes!' _but another part of me was too scared to answer.

I sighed and felt my shoulders slump in defeat. "Could you help me with my dress?"

I heard Ed cough in a startled way as I walked around the screen and turned my back to him, pulling my hair out of the way for him. A minute later I felt Edmund's fingers pick nervously at the ties on my back. I closed my eyes as Edmund tightened the lower strings, gradually going up my back. Just at the spine of my upper back, Edmund brushed his fingers against my skin and I shivered.

I gasped as suddenly the bodice of my dress was tugged too tight and I couldn't breathe. "Ed...Too tight! Loosen it up a bit."

"Sorry," Ed mumbled as the bodice loosened a fraction. I let out a slow breath, feeling my lungs able to expand again. Another few minutes later Edmund tied the strings at the top of my dress and stepped away. I let my hair fall down my back and I walked over to my dressing cabinet and picked up a few hair grips to keep my hair out of my face. Then I wandered over to the mirror by the window of my quarters.

I looked at my reflection and found myself looking at a nervous younger version of myself. I remembered having a couple of spots at my temple but other than that, my face looked relatively the same. Even that blasted scar across my cheek. I reached up and touched it gingerly remembering the day that the White Witch gave it to me. I pulled my hand away abruptly and stared at my body in the mirror as it was now. I had grown maybe a few inches taller than I was at fourteen. My body had filled out quite nicely although it was nothing compared to Susan. She looked beautiful with a slim curvy body. I however looked a bit bigger than her, curvier if you could call it that with wider hips than chest. My red dress seemed to make my hair look darker in this light and make my skin look whiter. Like a ghost.

"Nice choice." I nodded to Edmund who had stood silently staring at me until he jumped and nodded in agreement. "Was there anything else you wanted?"

"Oh, that reminds me. We're nearing Calormen's harbour. You should pack a couple of bags to sleep over night whilst we're there." Edmund looked down at the floor as a look of dread came over his face.

"You don't like Rabadash do you?" I guessed smoothing out the crinkles in my dress.

"Well, I'm not exactly keen on him no, but if Susan wants to marry him, what choice do I have?" Edmund threw his hands up in the air and then let them drop. He then turned to me and offered a sheepish smile. "I am sorry if I upset you earlier."

"Oh it's fine now. Spur of the moment kind of thing." I wrapped my arms around his waist and let my head rest against his chest. "Sorry for acting like an ass. But for future reference, stop being grumpy all the time or next time I'll push you overboard to the fishes."

"Noted," Edmund nodded and I pulled away from him, walking over to my bedside table and picking up my Sais. Falstaff was going to kill me if he heard that I had just thrown them down on my table. I tied the belt around my waist and I felt the hair on the back of my neck prickle as I noticed Ed staring at me out of the corner of my eye. I looked up at him curiously and paused in what I was doing. As he realised that I was watching him Edmund shuffled from one foot to another and scratched the back of his neck. I frowned. _Why was he getting nervous?_ "You look lovely in that dress."

"You've complimented me a lot recently." I stated remembering on my birthday when he was stumbling over his words in Peter's room. I watched as Edmund stared at the floor, or more likely my feet. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"N-no no. Of course there isn't. What makes you say that?"

"You're all nervous and you never used to get nervous around me. Well, except once." I stepped forward until I was right in front of him, staring up into his eyes so that he'd look at me properly. "Do you remember when we first met?" Edmund shook his head. I smiled and took his hand in mine. "We were both four and I had recently moved to Finchley. You, Peter and Susan and your parents were all in the park..."

_I felt the warm sand beneath my little toes as I sat with on my own in the public park sandbox. I was trying to make a sandcastle without a bucket and spade but all the sand just ended up in a massive mound. I tried rebuilding the turrets of my castle but I only piled more and more sand on top of the mound. I pouted and kicked the mound away from me in frustration. I wondered when my father was coming back with our ice creams._

"_Peter! Give me back my bucket!" I heard a shriek and I jumped as I saw a little dark-haired boy running with a little red face after a slightly taller boy with blonde hair, waving around a blue bucket. The blonde boy, Peter as I figured out, kept on running teasing the younger boy until suddenly Peter smacked into my father who was carrying two ice creams. Peter fell back on his bum and stared up in horror at what he had done. _

"_Careful young man, you should watch where you're running." Peter scrambled to his feet mumbled a quick sorry and ran as fast as he could away from my father before he could get into any more trouble. The little dark-haired boy picked up his bucket and clutched it to his chest. My father smiled down at him and offered him an ice cream. "Are you going to the sandbox, young man?"_

"_Daddy said not to talk to strangers." _

"_My name's Joseph, what's yours?" My father said as he began to lead the boy to the sandbox. _

"_Ed."_

"_Are your parents at the park with you Ed?" Ed nodded, pointing behind him at a lovely looking couple sitting on a bench with a girl in long brown plaits. My father glanced up at Ed's parents and then looked at me with a smile. "Would you like to meet my daughter?"_

_Ed blinked in surprise and looked around until he spotted me staring back at him. Slowly, he nodded and wiped his nose on his sleeve. They walked over to me and my eyes didn't stray away from this strange little boy. Ed sat down slowly in the sandbox opposite me and eyed me warily, still clutching his bucket to his chest as if I was going to snatch it away from him any second. _

"_This is Alexandra. Alexandra say hello to Ed." My father said handing me my ice cream. I took it and waved a little at Ed. He waved a little back. I looked down at my ice cream and held it out to Ed with a shy smile. Slowly, Ed shuffled forward and took the ice cream, offering his bucket to me in return. I took it and immediately __shovelled__ some sand into it with my hands, flipping it over when it was full. Carefully I lifted the bucket and squealed happily when it stayed up. _

"_Look, Daddy look! It stayed up! It stayed up!" I grinned happily staring at Ed in amazement that his bucket managed to make my castle stay up. Ed flushed and grinned, hiding behind the ice cream that I had given him. My father smiled warmly at me and slid his hand through his light hair. _

"...and then you dropped your ice cream on my foot and made me kick it over." I rolled my eyes at him watching as Edmund grinned at the memory.

"It was an accident. And the ice cream was very cold." Edmund shrugged easily.

"Well, of course it's cold, its _ice cream._ They're hardly going to make it hot are they?" I chuckled shaking my head when I suddenly realised how close we actually were. His broad chest was nearly pressed against mine as I noticed Edmund's hand on my waist. _Why do I never notice when Edmund's hands are touching my waist?_ I thought to myself as I looked up at Ed. He was staring down at me and suddenly, I didn't want to slap him like I'd wanted to earlier. I wanted to kiss him again. I reached up on my toes, my hands touching his chest for balance and my lips were almost against his when the door opened.

"Oh my... Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude." Susan spluttered as she hid on the other side of the door. Ed and I sprang apart as if we had been burnt, flushing a bright crimson colour and unable to look at each other.

Ed cleared his throat and looked up at Susan. "What is it, sister?"

"We're just about to dock in the harbour. I just thought I'd come and tell you..." Susan looked between her brother and then at me staring awkwardly at the floor. "Nevermind, I'll come back later."

"No it's fine. I was just leaving anyway." Edmund then darted out of the door quickly past Susan without looking back. I felt myself shaking as Susan and I were left in my room.

"Are you alright?" Susan asked me warily.

"Yes, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" I looked up at her with wide eyes. I had spoken too fast I realised that now and Susan was clever. "I think I'd better go. I'll see you later." With that I hurried past Susan and up on to thee top deck. There was just one word being repeated in my head as I walked around the sailors busying themselves on the ship.

_Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. _


	28. We're Taken on a Creepy Tour of Calormen

_Hello everybody!_

_Okay I will admit, I haven't finished the next chapter yet but I will finish it as soon as possible. I've been stressed about coursework at school so I unfortunately had to put this on pause. But now I'm putting this on now because I just couldn't wait._

_I am so happy that you have all reviewed the last chapter. Welcome to the story _**basaltone**, **fantasyluver714 **_and _**keacdragon. **_I really hope you like the rest of the story._

_The Unspoken Words of Narnia competition is now closed so you won't be able to send in any stories. Sorry. There might be another one later in the year but we'll let you know._

_Here is a little snippet of the next chapter _**This is a Seriously Rubbish Party**_**.**_

"_**In all of Narnia...Ed, he looks like a sparkly walrus!" I gaped at the sight of the Tisroc as he slowly made his way down the steps. Edmund choked on his drink and started coughing. I sighed and slapped his back. "Honestly Edmund, I thought Susan taught you to drink properly."**_

_So there you go. Please leave a review. I love hearing from you all. Enjoy! :)_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**We're taken on a creepy tour of Calormen**

The sun beat down on us as we docked at Calormen's harbour and I swear I could see heat waves simmering up into the sky. I felt a tender itch on my skin as we slowly stepped on to the docks and as I glanced at my arms I noticed my skin growing pinker by the minute. That's the thing with me, I'm hot and toasty when it comes to winter but I burn during the summer and go even whiter afterwards. It was a never-ending cycle. Mr Tumnus had finally managed to find Prince Corin who had disappeared down below the deck to practice the move I had tried to teach him and he was now waiting to walk down the slight bridge to reach us. It was sweet that he'd shown such dedication.

I spotted Edmund standing beside Susan and Sir Peridan keeping a close eye on his sister in case she had any ideas about disappearing. I was sure that whilst he was here he wouldn't let Susan out of his sight. He didn't spot me though which I was glad for because I didn't want to feel embarrassed of myself again. Mr Tumnus and Corin stepped on to the dock and Corin tried to make a run for it. I held my hand out in front of Corin's chest just as reached me and he halted with a groan, rubbing his chest. "Ow! What was that for?" he exclaimed. I glanced over at Edmund to see him turn his gaze quickly back to Sir Peridan.

"Could you stay with me whilst we're in Calormen Corin? I'd feel much more comfortable if you stayed close." I asked linking my arm through his, pretending that everything was normal whereas inside, my stomach was churning.

"I'm not going to run off if that's what you think." Corin replied indignantly.

"I know, but please?" I pleaded.

Corin sighed and I watched his shoulders slump. "Okay."

"Thank you!" I grinned and pecked his cheek with a friendly kiss. Corin's eyes widened in shock and I think for the first time in his life, he was stumped with nothing to say. I held back a chuckle and pulled him along the harbour.

As soon as I reached the others with Corin I was surprised with the sight of a hunch-backed old man with a long grey beard, bowing so low in front of Edmund and Susan that I thought he was going to fall over and squish his nose into the wood of the dock. "Welcome! Welcome Barbarian King and Queen of Narnia! The Tisroc (May he live forever) is awaiting your arrival. Come, come."

"_Barbarian King and Queen_..? Who do they think they are, the Romans?" I muttered rolling my eyes at the ridiculousness of the situation.

"Sorry?" Corin asked confused. "What are Romans?"

"Nevermind," I shook my head scolding myself for forgetting yet again that no one else apart from the Pevensies and I had come from England. I glanced at Edmund for a second and noticed his face was in a grimace. Apparently he must be thinking along the same lines as me. Looks like Rabadash is not getting off to a great start. "Come along Corin, don't want to lag behind now do we?"

"Maybe you don't but I wouldn't mind being back on the ship and out of this heat." Corin sighed fanning himself with his hand and pulling at his collar. I understood how he felt. Being from a country that was much cooler than Calormen I was used to the summer breezes and the occasional rainy shower. And I'm not just talking about Narnia either. I could remember the near constant downpour of rain we would get during the winter that always made me smile. _That's when you know you're British_, my grandmother would say to me. _You know you're definitely British when you smile at rain._

"Well, look at it this way, the quicker we catch up, the quicker we'll be out of this heat." I said reasonably, tugging poor Corin along until we were back with the group. We were being led through a busy market place, filled with bustling people wearing dirty peasant clothing. These must be the common folk, busying themselves with their day-to-day lives carrying their produce to and from stalls all around us. Sharp, mouth-watering smells of spices filled the air with almost every stall we passed. There were all sorts of stalls selling different things; brightly coloured scarves, fruit, fish, shoes, healing potions from what seemed to be an apothecary and there was even a stall selling lizards. I gazed at one stall in particular. It was a flower stall, filled with large bouquets of vibrant colourful flowers. I longed to go and smell them and to touch their petals.

"Lady Alexandra you're tugging on my arm." I blinked to find myself grasping Corin's arm and on my way to the flower stall. Feeling embarrassed of myself, I composed myself and apologised to Corin shuffling back to the others who hadn't even realised I had strayed. As we returned to the group once more I noticed the old man at the front, guiding us through the crowd, was speaking aloud.

"Way! Way! Way!" the old guide screeched at the top of his voice. A few people jumped and parted around us like the sea parts for a ship. "Give way for the Barbarian King! Way for the guests of the Tisroc (May he live forever)!"

"Oh give me strength," I heard Edmund mutter under his breath, a strained smile on his face. I tried not to laugh, unlike Corin who was sniggering into his hand like a little schoolboy. Sir Peridan, one of Edmund's best Knights, clapped his hand on Edmund's shoulder and whispered in his ear. Edmund relaxed loosening his grip on the hilt of his sword. However I could still see how irritated he was becoming from the tight-lipped expression he had on his face.

"Excuse me kind sir," Susan asked the old man politely.

"Sir? I am the Grand High Vizier, Ahoshta Tarkaan! I am not a Sir." The old man corrected proudly, puffing out his chest. _No, you are certainly not a _Sir. I thought darkly finding a new disliking to the old man. "I am the most valued advisor of the Tisroc (May he live forever) himself."

"Oh, how silly of me, I should've known." Susan feigned innocently. I refrained from rolling my eyes, knowing that Susan must have thought this man was being ridiculous too. I glanced at Edmund to see him eyeing Ahoshta Tarkaan with narrowed eyes and I felt my arm being squeezed by Corin as he glared at the old man as well, muttering a few choice words that would have more suited a commoner than a Prince. Susan continued to speak. "Kind and honourable Vizier, might I ask that we seek shelter from the heat? You must understand we are not used to it as you Calormenes are and I fear I might faint." Susan fanned herself with her hand and pretended to be dizzy.

"Yes, I do believe that it's best for Queen Susan to be in the shade." Mr Tumnus spoke suddenly rushing to Susan's side in case she 'fainted'. Mr Tumnus turned to Edmund. "But might I suggest we only take a few of our council for the time being your highness. There does seem to be quite a few of us."

"Excellent suggestion," Edmund readily agreed. There was a good deal of Narnians who had come along with us on our voyage, some of whom were sailors, others from the Council and many others were Knights. "Let's see, Thornbut and Sallowpad you may accompany us. The rest of you, please return to the ship and help unload the cargo." The rest of our party bowed to Edmund and left for the ship leaving behind a Dwarf who appeared to be in his early thirties and a large Raven, who joined our group with serious faces.

Ahoshta led us once more through the crowds who now had seen all they had wanted and were keeping out of our way. Up ahead of us in the middle of the city was a huge stone palace. It wasn't as beautiful as Cair Paravel but it certainly was grand. Ivy had once said to me that the palace of a city was supposed to reflect the prosperity of the towns and countryside around it. Judging from the dusty roads, minimum produce on the stalls and the state of the peasantry, Tashbaan seemed to be the opposite of how prosperous it should be. An uneasy feeling increased inside me as we headed up a hill towards the castle.

As we walked I noticed Edmund stop and stare at something in the distance. Curious, I tapped Corin on the arm and told him to walk with Susan and then walked back to Edmund, wondering what in the world would distract him so much. He didn't notice I was there, or if he did he didn't acknowledge me. I followed his hardened gaze until I saw a large derelict building, occupied by brightly clothed women and shady dark faced men. Through one of the broken windows I noticed two women disappear with a man into one of the back rooms in a hurry. "Is that a -"

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Edmund nodded grimly, looking positively ill at the thought. "Come along, let's get out of here." Edmund grasped my arm and hurriedly tugged me along up the street.

"I'm assuming Rabadash is certainly not in your good books now." I guessed as we hurried along. Edmund grunted a no and kept walking. "You've only met him once. You don't know him very well, he could be different."

It was true. When Susan had reached a marriageable age, Peter had conducted a tournament for all foreign Princes to enter with the prize of being considered a suitor. Over one hundred suitors came along (many of whom I deduced were not Princes) to the tournament with only four winners. That was over a year ago and out of the four Susan only replied to Rabadash's letter. But from the tournament he seemed like a decent man.

"I have my doubts that he could be different." Edmund scoffed. "I mean, who would have such a place of...of..._debauchery_ right in the centre of their city?"

"You're really not coping well with the idea of Susan getting married are you?" I sighed as we slowed to a stop. Our small party of people were just up ahead within our sights so we wouldn't get lost on our way to the palace.

Edmund let out a frustrated sigh. "It's not that I'm not coping with the idea...it's just...I'm _concerned_ that someone would try to control Susan."

"Little Brother Talk for 'back off and leave my sister alone', is it?" I smiled as Edmund gave me a gentle shove. "Oh Ed, you and Pete are so protective over Susan and Lucy. It makes me wonder whether you'll be this protective over me when I get married."

Edmund paled suddenly and stared at me with wide eyes. "You're getting married?"

"No, I'm not getting married. Don't be so silly." I rolled my eyes at him as he let out a sigh of relief. "At least not yet I won't be anyway. Edmund you need to relax a bit, otherwise you'll collapse with stress or something. Come on." I stepped behind him and nudged him forward after our group, who were now starting to notice that we were gone.

"You're so frustrating today." Edmund muttered to which I glared at him. We hurried our pace to catch up with the group who stared at us with surprise and then shrugged as if the both of us disappearing were a common occurrence. Only Corin had other ideas.

"Where did you two go? Not off to fight some more were you?" Corin asked mischievously. Edmund shot a glare at the young teenager.

"Watch your tone, young man." He barked, pointing at Corin with a threatening finger. I anxiously squeezed Edmund's arm.

"Or what?" Corin replied defiantly to which Ed stepped forward with a fierce burning glare on his face. I tried my best to hold Edmund back but it was like trying to pull a dog away from chasing a cat. I reached around and placed myself between him and Corin, hoping to stall any incident that might occur. I turned to Edmund and touched his shoulders, pushing him back.

"Relax..." I said calmly.

Sir Peridan cuffed Corin on the back of his head. "Or we'll put you in the stockades for the peasants to throw rotten food at."

"You wouldn't." Corin said fearfully, rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't tempt me." Edmund growled.

"Alright boys break it up." Susan said in a stern motherly tone taking Corin to the front of the group away from Edmund who was seething.

"Told you. Utter nightmare that boy is." Edmund muttered to me. I sighed and shook my head as we entered the Tisroc's palace.

* * *

"So these are going to be your quarters for the duration of your stay here." One of the servants said throwing the doors open for us. "I hope it is to your satisfaction."

I let out a gasp at the beauty of the room. Inside there was a large room furnished with all the things you would expect as a member of Royalty but there was more. There was a warm open fireplace along one of the walls filling the room with a warm cosy orange glow. There were no less than three large cushioned settées that were covered with plump embroidered silk pillows and on the floor was a fur rug. It looked so soft that I wanted to immediately take my shoes off my sore feet and wiggle my toes in the softness of it. In the middle of the room was a table laden with massive bowls of fruit, pitchers of juice and wine and a plate of roast beef still cooking in its own juices. If I wasn't a vegetarian it would've made my mouth water.

"Thank you, it is more than enough." Susan smiled at the servant.

"The Tisroc (May he live forever) and his son Prince Rabadash (May he too live forever in the glory of his father) shall wish to meet you on the morrow and wishes you all a good evening." The servant, who seemed to be a young man of around seventeen with a cleanly shaven face and a broad build, said apologetically.

"Thank you and tell the Tisroc we shall be looking forward to meeting him in the morning." Susan graciously nodded her head as the servant bowed low and exited the room backwards closing the doors shut firmly in front of him. There was a gush of sound as everyone let out a sigh, relaxing in relief that we were all finally alone.

"What a dreadful man! I firmly desire never to see that Ahoshta Tarkaan ever again as long as I may live." Susan declared throwing herself down on the settee less graciously than she had led to believe all day.

"I agree. You certainly should've let me box him. That would've taught him some decent manners." Corin replied picking up a crimson red apple and noisily bit into it, climbing up the settee and sitting on the back of it. I strode up behind him and pushed him into the seat and rapped the back of his hand until he put the apple in his lap.

"Let's start with your manners first before you start judging others on theirs, shall we Corin?" I said sternly trying to hide the little smile forcing its way on to my mouth. Corin blushed crimson and sat up straight before taking a more dignified bite out of his apple.

Sir Peridan shook his head tiredly as he poured himself a goblet of wine. "If all must be said, apart from a few bits here and there, we have admittedly had a pleasant welcome." Sir Peridan was a tall, stocky, auburn haired man with very much the same build as Peter, but a more reasonable and serious personality. It is strange how often I have mistaken Sir Peridan for either Peter or Edmund, despite not even looking like either of them.

"A little too pleasant if you ask me," scoffed Thornbut the Dwarf.

"Why shouldn't it be pleasant?" I asked picking up a silver plate and began to fill it with some grapes and some bread and cheese. "We are only here on a diplomatic visit concerning Susan's pending engagement."

"But Lady Alexandra, how do we know we can trust them? It's not as if we know if they are our allies or not. We haven't even drawn up a peace treaty between our two countries yet." Thornbut pointed out.

"If they wanted to be enemies with us then they would've started a war already." Sir Peridan took a sip of wine and grimaced. "Bleugh, too sour..." Sir Peridan chucked the rest of the wine into the fire where it fizzled as it splashed on the logs.

"Sir Peridan is right, Thornbut. Why go to all this trouble of inviting us here if they are only going to start a war?" Susan sighed.

"Maybe they want something from us." Sallowpad suggested perching himself comfortably on a cushion.

"Guys, stop. Don't you think we're getting ahead of ourselves?" I said sitting down with my supper on my lap.

"I agree." Mr Tumnus nodded walking over to lean against the side of the fireplace, next to Sir Peridan who was now munching on a peach. "It is not good to discuss treason and ill-will against a foreign neighbour without provocation or good reason. That's just basically asking for trouble."

Susan looked at the window over the far side of the room and frowned. "Edmund you've been rather quiet. Is something the matter?"

Edmund continued to stare out on to the city with a stoic expression on his face, until a moment later he looked up, the troubled look gone from his features and a smile stretched across his mouth. "Nothing's the matter Sue. It's just been a long day that's all." I frowned at Edmund. He was hiding something I could tell. A small memory of a younger Edmund with icing sugar all over his mouth filled my mind. I shook my head and ate a piece of cheese. Edmund strode over to the banquet on the table and poured himself a goblet of juice. "I think we should all put tomorrow out of our minds for the night, have supper and then have an early night. Agreed?"

Everyone nodded, although Corin reluctantly agreed in the end. Edmund sat himself down next to me and swiftly picked a grape off my plate. I slapped his hand and gave him a stern look. "Manners Edmund, we've got to set an example." I nodded towards Corin who was staring over at us with an amused expression on his face. Edmund rolled his eyes in reply and popped the grape in his mouth with a cheeky smirk. A smile grew on my face as I turned back to my supper. I heard a snicker and looked up at Susan to see her looking knowingly at me. I shuffled away from Edmund feeling embarrassed again.

As the evening wound to an end it was agreed that Susan and I took the separate room whilst the men slept on the settee and rug in front of the fireplace. It appeared that the servants had neglected to tell us that there was only one separate bedroom and not two like we expected. I had changed out of my dress into my nightgown and was now unfolding the blankets on the bed ready for me to get in, when Susan appeared from around her changing screen with a smirk on her face. "So, what was that all about in the cabin today?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." I replied innocently slipping into bed and twisted around to plump my pillows. Susan jumped on her half of the bed and grinned.

"Oh come on. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Just admit it." Susan slipped into bed and turned to face me.

"Admit what?" I stared at her with an eyebrow raised.

"You fancy my brother." Susan declared mischievously. "You fancy Ed!"

"Not this again." I sighed rolling my eyes.

"Why won't you just say it? Everyone can see that you do. It's so obvious! Even Corin can see it and he's only been with us for three days."

"Because it is _not_ true," I said sitting back against my pillow. "Why would I fancy Ed? We're just friends. Oh don't give me that look Sue."

"Well, if you don't fancy Ed then why did you get so upset at the Dancing Lawn when he kissed that girl? And why did you get so angry when he teased you on the ship today?" Susan gave me a knowing look. "Don't think I don't know. I heard what Edmund said."

I tensed and looked away from Susan, feeling my chest start to tighten up as I remembered our fight today. Forcing the angry tears back I turned back to face Susan. "Has anyone ever told you you're too clever for your own good?"

"Does this mean I'm right?"

"No it does not." I turned away and laid down, punching my pillow until I was satisfied with it.

"I will make you admit it Alexandra. I'm not going to drop this." I felt Susan roll onto her side as the blanket was tugged up over my shoulder.

"Goodnight Susan." I leaned up and blew out my candle, drowning me in darkness. It took a few minutes for me to get to sleep but that was when the nightmare started.

I was shaking on the dirty floor of my cell struggling to stay awake and drag myself away against the cold stone wall. My captors had long since taken my manacles off and I had tried to fight them off but it was useless. I couldn't do a lot of damage in my weak state. I felt stinging cuts on my hands as I dragged myself over broken leftover skeletons and jagged rocks but I kept on going. I wanted to get as far away from that hideous creature as possible.

"I will ask you again wench and this time I want some answers." My captor growled in a deep rumbling voice taking a threatening step forward. I scrambled far away from the dark creature. I couldn't see who it was in this darkness. Or maybe it wasn't darkness. Was I blind? Had they taken away my sight whilst I was unconscious? I suddenly felt a rough hand grasp my jaw tightly forcing my head up. There was a little light left in the cell but only enough for me to see his dirty dark skin. His foul breath made me want to vomit. "Where are the secret passages into Cair Paravel?"

I spat at him with every ounce of disgust I had in me. My captor let go of my jaw only to strike me across my cheek. I let out a cry of pain, tears rolling down my cheeks as I tried desperately to ignore the pain. "Do I need to threaten you? Do I need to kill your little friend? And the baby?"

"You wouldn't...don't you even dare touch them!" I shouted throwing a rock at him and hitting him in the side of his face. Another slap struck my other cheek as blood started to trickle down my jaw.

"Temper, temper. I've already killed one of them, what's to stop me killing the rest of them? What about your little lover, hmm? Should I kill him too?" he snarled pinning my throat against the wall. "Or maybe I should leave him a present. What do you say? Do you think he'll like it?" He grabbed my wrists and pinned them to my chest letting go of my throat to try to stop my struggling. I screamed and begged for him to stop, wishing that someone would burst in and rescue me.

"No! Stop it! Let me go. EDMUND!" I screamed throwing myself up in bed, tears streaming down my cheeks as I kicked the covers off me and curled up into a ball. Susan woke with a jump next to me and then the door suddenly burst open as Sir Peridan, Thornbut and Edmund ran in with their swords raised and ready to attack. I was shaking terribly as Edmund's gaze fell on me before he sheathed his sword and hurriedly wrapped me in a hug.

"Shh, shh...it's alright. The nightmare's over now. You're safe." Edmund whispered soothingly, rubbing circles on my back and holding me tight against him.

"I don't want it to happen. Please don't make it happen." I sobbed into his shirt grasping his waist, holding onto him for dear life. "P-Please don't let it h-happen Ed. Please!"

"I won't let it happen. I promise. Alright, you're safe now. It was just a nightmare. Alexandra, look at me. _Look at me_." I hesitantly looked up at Edmund as he stared at me seriously. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, do you hear? No one, okay." I nodded as Edmund kissed my forehead and turned to Susan. "Su, could you get me a glass of water for Alexandra?"

"Of course." I felt the bed move as Susan got out of bed and left the room. I was still shaking but my tears were beginning to slow down. A shadow fell across the floor and I panicked pulling away from Edmund and grabbing one of my Sais on the bedside table, shakily pointing it at the intruder. Corin was standing in the doorway warily holding his hands up in defence.

"C-Corin." I stuttered as Edmund whirled around to face him.

"I heard a scream and wondered what was going on." He said defensively.

"Corin, just go back to bed." Edmund told the young Prince.

"Has Lady Alexandra had a nightmare?" he asked curiously.

"Corin, go to bed." Edmund repeated in a harsher tone than I think he intended. Corin stepped back and lowered his head but stopped just as he was about to go out the door.

"Whenever I have a nightmare, it always helps to leave a candle or two lit as you sleep. Helps scare the monsters away." Corin spoke in a quiet voice. I smiled a little.

"Thank you Corin." I whispered. Corin nodded and disappeared from the room just as Susan arrived with the glass of water.

"Here you go." She said as I shakily took the glass and held it. I wasn't ready to take a sip yet. "Are you alright?"

"Please don't leave me alone. I don't want to go back to sleep." I pleaded with Susan and Edmund, feeling anxious again.

Sir Peridan coughed and stepped forward concerned. "Lady Alexandra, I don't think that's very proper."

"Don't worry, I trust them." Susan said watching Edmund and me. "Let's just leave them be for a moment."

"But Your Majesty -"

"No buts Sir Peridan. Now come on shoo. You too, Thornbut." Susan interrupted shooing both Sir Peridan and Thornbut out of the room and closing the door behind her until just a bit of light filtered on the floor.

We were alone. We were so silent that all you could hear was our breathing and the pathetic sniffling coming from me as sob after sob threatened to take centre stage. I was still shaking and I held on tighter to Edmund, seeing flashes of that shadowed man laying his hands on me. "Edmund, don't ever leave me alone. Not once."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Edmund held my face and peered into my eyes. "You really are scared aren't you?"

I pulled my head out of his grip. "What do you think? I'm a wreck!" Even in the dim light I could see how when I held up my hand it was trembling violently. Edmund grabbed my hand and he held it in both of his stroking it gently and willing the tremors to calm.

"Maybe you should stay up for a couple of hours until you fall asleep." Edmund suggested.

"I don't think I'll ever be able to sleep again." I replied miserably wiping my tears.

"Sure you will." Edmund rubbed my arms comfortingly before he gathered up a velvet comforter and wrapped it around my shoulders. "Now come on, let's leave so Susan can get some sleep when she comes back in." He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and guided me out of the room. I didn't meet anyone's eyes feeling too embarrassed that I had caused such a commotion. Edmund led me to the furthest settee in the room and we both sat down, Edmund letting me lean into his side. I stared at the fire that was slowly getting smaller as the night drew on. I didn't even notice when the others went back to bed. Sir Peridan and Thornbut were camping in front of the fire whilst Corin slept on one of the settées and Sallowpad nestled quietly on a cushion.

I looked up at Edmund with wide eyes and grasped his shirt in my hand. "You...you'll stay awake until I f-fall asleep right?"

Edmund's eyebrows creased and he held me tighter against him. "Of course I will."

I let out a shaky breath and snuggled into Ed's side staring at the small flickering orange flames of the fire. I felt warm in Edmund's embrace, listening to him breathing next to me whilst his head rested against the top of mine and soon I felt my head drop onto his chest, my eyes drooping shut and my body feeling heavy like a sandbag. I was so tired that when Edmund carefully got up and moved me until I was lying on the settee with my head on a cushion, I didn't even protest. I didn't even feel him kiss my cheek and pull my blanket up around my shoulders. I just felt so tired.

"Goodnight Alexandra." I faintly heard Edmund whisper in my ear. "Sweet dreams."


	29. This is a Seriously Rubbish Party

_Hello everybody! Me again! Super-Super long chapter for you!_

_How is everybody? I hope you're great considering I can't get responses unless you review. Anyhow, here is another chapter for you all in the life of Alexandra. I'm quite looking forward to the next chapter, not that I have anything planned for it…okay I lie. The little snippet at the bottom of this note might give it away. Up to you if you want to read it but it's going to be included in the next chapter anyway._

_Welcome to the story _**soccergurl31294**, **Reader7500** _and_ **Gabrielle. **_(Gabrielle, if you're reading this I hope you're feeling better. Hopefully this chapter might make you feel better.) Thanks for all your reviews for the last chapter. They made me so happy._

_The next chapter is called _**Prince Corin becomes Houdini. **_Here is a little snippet of the next chapter._

"**Who was that?" I heard Edmund ask in a tone that I couldn't recognise. A small smile appeared on my face and I smelled the bluebell. It had a sweet floral scent to it that seemed to make my heart feel lighter. I tipped my head to the side and turned to Ed.**

"**A secret admirer." I replied conspiratorially before turning away and leaving him on his own, twirling the bluebell as I went.**

_Please leave a review. I love hearing from you all. Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**This is a Seriously Rubbish Party**

It had been nearly three weeks since we first arrived in Calormen and during that time Edmund's already foul mood had increasingly soured to the point where he was almost unbearable to be around. Everything that had happened to do with the Tisroc and his son had been like a thorn in his side. Nothing was able to console him apart from the far-off hope of leaving this horrid place. I couldn't blame him really, on the first morning we spent here, we were due to have breakfast with the Tisroc but he never appeared. I thought it might have been because an urgent business had come up that needed the Tisroc's attention. Things like that always happened back in Narnia and it was often a rare occasion where all the Pevensie's and I were present for the first meal of the day. So for the time being we just assumed this was the case. Only, it happened the next morning. And the morning after that and the morning after that until Edmund was positively ticked off with the Tisroc's lack of hospitality.

"Pure rudeness it is, Alexandra. Utter rudeness not to join their guests for breakfast when _they _sent the invitation." Edmund muttered as he speared what looked like a hash brown but filled with what looked like chicken and venison combined.

"Something has probably come up."

"Surely not every morning for two and a half weeks straight," Edmund scoffed.

"Oh hush up Edmund. Stop being such a sourpuss." Susan scolded her little brother, taking a sip of her iced lemon juice.

"Have you actually been in the company of Prince Rabadash yet? We haven't seen hide nor hair of him or his father so far." Edmund asked irritably.

"As a matter of fact I have." Susan sniffed turning her gaze back to her breakfast. Edmund gaped at his sister. I blinked in surprise at her as well because no one had known that she had met with Prince Rabadash at all.

"When? Why wasn't I told?"

"Goodness me Edmund, you sound like Peter." Susan rolled her eyes. "I was perfectly safe in his company and Mr Tumnus was escorting me for each of the meetings." Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Mr Tumnus shy away next to Thornbut looking a bit red-faced.

"You still should have told me." Edmund grumbled into his goblet. "Are you meeting him today?"

"No, his highness has to prepare for the ball tonight. It was supposed to be the welcoming party but of course everyone has been a bit busy…"

"What would they be doing instead of looking after their guests?" I wondered taking a sip of the iced sherbet lemon drink that was a speciality here in Calormen. Whenever I had a sip of the drink, I immediately tasted a sharp tang of iced lemon. It reminded me of my favourite sweet from when I was back in England, Sherbet Lemon. I hadn't had any in years and my mouth watered longingly for the sweet taste of them to burst in my mouth.

"Exactly my point," Edmund exclaimed throwing his hands up in an obvious gesture. "What on earth could they be doing?"

Susan stood up with a frustrated huff much to the surprise of all of us seated, and narrowed her eyes at her brother. "Try ruling their country Edmund." With that she quietly excused herself from the table and stormed out of the dining room. Edmund sighed and slouched back in his chair. Mr Tumnus stood up and bowed respectably before following Susan, making sure she had an escort with her.

"You should go talk to her." I said nodding in the direction that Susan and Mr Tumnus went. Edmund glanced up at me incredulously and for a minute he looked almost fourteen.

"_I _should go talk to her? I don't think so, not when she's this angry." Edmund exclaimed. "Why can't you? You're a woman. She'd more likely talk to you than me at the moment."

"You're her brother. You're her family for goodness sake!" I paused a moment. "Besides you're the one who should apologise to her, not me." I heard the sound of scraping chairs and murmurs from our other guests saying that they were just popping out for a minute but I didn't take any notice of them.

"And how exactly do you suppose I do that?"

"You could try saying 'sorry' for a start." I replied in a dead-pan tone. I rolled my eyes and sat back from the breakfast table, my appetite seeming to vanish. "How am I supposed to know what to say to Susan? It's not like I spend every minute of the day with her." Usually I spent my day either working in the infirmary or with Edmund. It was often a rare occasion that I would spend time with anyone else. The thought made me pause to think. It was embarrassing to think how much time I spent with Edmund or on my own. I should really be more sociable.

"Why don't you talk to her about...whatever it is you women talk about with each other?" Edmund trailed off as I stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You really are as clueless as a Nazi about women aren't you?" I watched as Edmund frowned at me. Back in England there was a running in-joke that the Nazis were quite silly and it had all started as a joke from Prime Minister Churchill. Whenever he made a "V" sign with two of his fingers in public, it meant that he was stating victory for the Allies. But the Nazis had thought it meant victory for them. They were really quite clueless. "Look, why don't you wait until later when she's calmed down and then apologise to her. She's perfectly safe with Mr Tumnus for the time being. I'll even come with you." I added when I saw him grimace.

"Fine," Edmund relented with a grumble and looked up noticing that we were left alone in the dining room. "Oh, it seems we have been left to our own devices."

"Well I am going to go have a walk in the town. Maybe have a look at some of the market stalls." I shrugged as I stood up, smoothing out the wrinkles in my dress. "By the way, whose turn is it on Corin duty?"

"Yours I think." Edmund replied.

I sighed. Well there goes my private time. I tried to look at it positively. At least I would...No; I was really struggling to look at it positively. "Are you sure you don't want to swap? I'll keep an eye on him at the ball."

"No way! I'm nearly at my wit's end with that boy." Edmund protested.

"You do know that he's very similar to you when you were his age." I commented as I started walking towards the exit of the room.

"He is not!"

"He is. Do you recall a time when you would argue with Peter? Do you remember a time when you were just as annoying as Corin?" I raised an eyebrow at him. Edmund remained silent. I nodded to myself as a satisfied smirk appeared on my face. "I rest my case."

"Oh shut up Alexandra." Edmund scowled.

I found Corin in our sleeping quarters spinning around the room with his arms striking out haphazardly into different things and sending them crashing to the floor. I assumed he was practicing the move I had shown him on the _Splendour Hyaline_two weeks ago. I hurried in and grabbed one of his wrists, holding him steady as he wobbled on his feet. "Careful there Corin, wouldn't want any accidents would we?" I watched as a flush painted his cheeks a rosy pink. He straightened up and smoothed out the creases in his clothes. I wrinkled my nose. "Dear me, Corin, have you had a wash yet?"

"Yes of course." He replied indignantly. I raised an eyebrow and turned him around, nudging him towards the bathroom.

"Go and have another wash and get ready to go out. We're going down to the market to have a look around."

"_We_? As in just us? No King Edmund..?" Corin asked surprised. I nodded and watched as a bright grin blew up on his face. "Great! You're much more fun than King Edmund. I don't know how you can stand to be near him when he's so grumpy."

"I beg your pardon," I stared at him in surprise. "I hope you don't mean what you said just now about Edmund. He is your father's ally and if Edmund hears what you've said about him you could very well become grounded for that insult."

Corin hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry. He never lets me have any fun though and he's always shouting or angry."

"Never mind him. He's just worried about his sister at the moment." I said as we entered the bathroom. It was as grand as the rest of the palace, with a golden bathtub in the middle of the room, big enough to fit two or three people in it at once and there were shelves upon shelves filled with different bottles of shampoos and soaps of all different colours and scents. There was one scent in particular that was my favourite and it smelt like jasmine mixed in with honeysuckle. I picked up a fluffy white towel that was so soft I thought that it was made out of feathers and an orange bar of soap. I smelled the bar of soap and smiled as the scent reminded me of ginger nut biscuits. I wonder if I will be able to take some back with me to Narnia.

"And you."

I halted in surprise and turned my attention to Corin. He had his back to me but I could see that he was rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. His skin had a nice sun-kissed tan to it that you could only see up close. "What do you mean by that, Corin?" I asked quietly. Corin glanced over his shoulder at me and shrugged, pouring a jug of warm water into a bowl.

"Well, after that time you had a nightmare he's been even grumpier. I just assumed that he's worried about you too because you're his girl."

"I am not his girl." I protested giving Corin the bar of soap and watching as he lathered it up and began washing his hands.

"Yes you are. Queen Susan told me that you and King Edmund have always been close." Corin stared up at me innocently.

"But that doesn't necessarily mean that I am his girl. We're just close friends." I spotted a thread sticking up on the towel and I began to tug on it.

"But you don't want to be…" Corin spoke slowly as if he was trying to guess what I was thinking. I sighed and looked up at Corin with a frown.

"When did you get so clever?" I wondered as Corin grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

"I've always been clever. I'm not a complete knucklehead you know." Corin chuckled as I splashed him a little with the water in the bowl. Corin splashed me back but I stopped before there was a full out war. I gave Corin the white towel I had held and he began to dry himself. "I am right though aren't I?"

I stayed silent, feeling a little uncomfortable with how many people think that I fancy Edmund. There were so many people who knew my secret that I half wanted to agree with them. As soon as Corin was clean and dressed properly we headed out of the palace into the town. The market place was as busy as it was on the first day we arrived but as we walked by some of the stalls there were traders calling more enthusiastically than before. There was a corner of a street where some peasants had set up their own mini orchestra with twanging lengths of twine, instruments that looked either like clarinets or oboes, and there were some players using wooden boxes as some sort of drum. They were playing a piece of music that was fast paced and made me want to dance along to it.

Corin paused as we passed a stall selling jewellery. I glanced at Corin and noticed that he was staring at a necklace of pearls in particular. I smiled and bumped his side. "Got someone in mind back at home, do we Corin?"

Corin shook his head as a flush crawled up his cheeks. "No, I was wondering whether Queen Susan would like something like that."

"I think you're a bit young to be proposing to Queen Susan Corin, but I think she'll find it flattering." I chuckled good-naturedly. Corin blushed a bright pink colour and fidgeted with the hem of his sleeve. I nudged him in his side and pointed at the array of green necklaces at the back. "I wouldn't go with pearls though, she hates them. I'd go with the emeralds at the back. Her favourite colour is green."

Corin looked up and smiled, peering at the emerald necklaces and the earrings beside them. In the end I gave Corin the money to buy an emerald necklace and a pair of earrings for Susan, which had cost thirty pieces of gold and two pieces of silver, and we continued on our way. Corin wouldn't say why he wanted to buy Susan a gift but I suppose it could only be because ever since he was young Susan has been a sort of mother figure for him ever since his own mother died.

We spent the day in the market place browsing the stalls (going to the flower stall twice because I wanted to smell all the different bouquets they had on show), buying ice cold drinks and just merely having a good time away from the Palace. There hadn't been much we could do before now, despite being here for nearly three weeks. We were given a tour of the palace, which I had found thoroughly boring and I just wanted to go to bed. We unloaded the cargo of the _Splendour Hyaline_ including the swords and weapons so that we could practice and Corin, Susan and I hadn't been feeling well for a week so we were stuck in bed. I can remember the morning after the first night we spent here.

_The fire had shrunk to a small pile of orange embers and the boiling Calormen sun was slowly starting to rise in the sky by the time I woke from my slumber on the settee. I could hear the soft snores coming from all the men in the room and for a minute I wondered how I had ended up in the men's quarters. Then I remembered the nightmare and sat up, frantically looking around the room, hoping that the man from the dream wasn't going to pop out of a dark corner and hurt me. My heart was beating rapidly in my chest and I found myself struggling to breathe until I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder. I let out a yell and recoiled away from it, my hands searching desperately for my Sais._

"_Alexandra, calm down. It's just me. Look, see? It's just me." Edmund soothed with a look of concern on his face. I began to calm down, feeling my hands shaking as I curled my knees up to my chin._

"_I thought you were...I thought you were _him_." I whispered as Edmund sat down next to me. I noticed a plate of fruit in his hand and a goblet of some sort of cloudy white juice in the other before he set them down on the table._

"_Who? Who did you think I was?" Edmund asked as I noticed the other men in the room slowly waking up._

"_There was this man in my dream. He was...he was going to hurt me if I didn't tell him something." I whispered as I remembered a flash from my dream._

"Do I have to threaten you? Do you want me to kill your little friend?"

_I shuddered and Edmund wrapped his arms around my shoulders, rubbing my arms to warm me up. "What did this man look like?" Edmund asked quietly._

"_I don't know. It was dark, I couldn't see a thing." I leaned into Edmund's side and grasped his shirt in my shaking hands. "Please don't let it happen, Ed."_

"_Of course I won't." Edmund frowned and tightened his grip around my shoulders. I stared at Edmund's face._

"_What are you thinking Ed?" I whispered into his throat. I felt Edmund's head lean against the top of mine as he grasped my hand and rubbed soft circles into the back of it._

"_I was just thinking that your nightmare isn't exactly what we need at this particular moment." I pulled away and frowned at him._

"_Well I can't help when they come along Edmund." I said defensively._

"_I know, I know." He said soothingly. "I'm just saying it's just seriously bad timing, that's all."_

_I settled back into his side and breathed in his scent. I smiled to myself and let out a small chuckle. "Ed, why do you smell like ginger nut biscuits?"_

"_Do you always make a habit of smelling me?" Edmund frowned at me as a smirk slowly began to grow on his mouth._

"_No." _Liar, _I thought to myself. "It's just a strong scent." I shrugged._

"Right_...I'm going to try to believe that but I think I'll struggle." I jabbed him in the stomach as a grin appeared on my lips._

"Thinking of dear Edmund, are we?" Corin grinned mischievously. I blinked and shook my head of the memory. I came up with a delicious idea and innocently linked my arm through his. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a little dark-haired boy staring over at us with a thumb in his mouth.

"A bit." I admitted. Corin snickered. I grinned at him. "I was just thinking that it's Edmund's turn to keep an eye on you at the party. Maybe you should make it a difficult job for him..."

"I like the way you're thinking." Corin said conspiratorially. "Do go on..."

* * *

By the time I laid out my plan to Corin it was time to start getting ready for the late Welcoming Party. Susan and I were to change in our sleeping quarters whilst all the others had to change in the living room, to save our privacy. I was sitting calmly at a dressing table with an elaborately decorated mirror watching Susan flit around the room frantically looking for different things to complete her outfit.

"I'm so nervous Alexandra. Prince Rabadash is supposed to be dancing with me in front of the court! I don't think I'll be able to do this." Susan said, her voice verging on hysterical. I stared at her reflection in the mirror.

"Susan, calm down. It's no use getting all nervous about a silly little dance." I sighed. "What difference does it make if you're dancing with Prince Rabadash or not? You've danced with Edmund and Peter in front of everyone before."

"But they're my brothers. That's completely different. Prince Rabadash is my lover." I blinked and spun around in my chair to stare at Susan in surprise.

"So you're definitely going to marry him then?"

Susan halted in the middle of the room and frowned in thought. She was dressed in a beautiful blue dress that lightened her dark blue eyes. Her eyes were the only sign that she was related to her brothers and sister and it was often overlooked because everyone noticed her other beautiful features instead. Her hair was in a casual half-up half-down style that fell down her back in long beautiful silky waves. I will admit, I used to be quite jealous of her when I was younger but it's hard not to be.

"I…I don't quite know yet." Susan huffed and sat herself down on the edge of the bed. I stood up and sat down beside her.

"Susan, are you having second thoughts?" I asked. I began to wonder what Prince Rabadash was actually like. I hadn't seen much of him apart from at the tournament that Peter had planned last year, but that isn't much to go on.

Susan stared up at me and shook her head rapidly. "No, of course I'm not. He's lovely…" Susan trailed off until she fell silent. The crackle of the fireplace in the corner was all I could hear in the room as Susan started fidgeting with her hands.

"Is he?" I asked tentatively afraid if I said the wrong thing. Susan swallowed and looked up with a frown.

"Yes…Well…Well, he's not exactly what I pictured as a perfect husband." Susan whispered. I frowned and wrapped my arm around Susan's shoulders pulling her into my side.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked slowly. "I mean, you don't have to marry him if you don't want to. Peter has always stated that you have all the support in the country behind you should you choose not to marry."

"I know, I know." Susan nodded. "Maybe it's just the nerves. I'll see if Prince Rabadash is any different at the ball and then make up my mind after that."

I smiled. "That sounds like a good plan."

There was a knock at the door as Corin stepped in with the emerald necklace and earrings that we had purchased this morning in the market. "Queen Susan? I have a present for you."

Susan stared at Corin in confusion but when Corin gave her the jewellery; her face seemed to light up with a smile. "Oh Corin, they're beautiful! Did you buy them for me?" Corin nodded shyly. Susan beamed and gathered Corin in a hug and kissed both his cheeks. "Thank you so much. I will wear them for the ball. Oh thank you Corin, you're such a sweet boy."

Corin blushed and shyly started to head back out of the room, claiming that it was nothing and that he should be getting ready for the ball before closing the door behind him. Susan beamed clipped the emerald necklace around her neck and put the earrings on.

"I won't suppose you had anything to do with this Alexandra. You always seem to have a hand in everything." She peered at my reflection in the mirror as she admired her necklace. I shrugged and began to finish tying my hair up into an elegant knot at the back of my head. I watched as Susan pursed her lips but then a small smile grew in place. "Hmm…more similarities…"

"What do you mean by that?" I narrowed my eyes at her suspiciously. Susan raised her eyebrows and shrugged.

"Nothing at all, just noticing that you and Edmund both seem to share that trait. Always in the background…noticing things that others don't…both denying that you like each other…" I rolled my eyes and chucked a pillow at her, narrowly missing her and hitting the mirror instead. Susan turned around and raised her looked at me innocently. "Was it something I said? Touchy subject..?"

"Oh ha, ha Susan, you're absolutely hilarious. You should be a jester." I stood up and collected up my jewellery from the desk, clipping them each around my throat and my wrist. One of the pieces of jewellery was the cornucopia necklace from my mother and the other one was the locket case from my father, which I had fashioned into a bracelet. I didn't want to lose them with so much left to figure out. "Okay, I think I'm ready to go. Are you Susan?"

Susan nodded and linked her arm around mine as we headed out of the room. Waiting for us in the living room was Edmund, dressed in his most kingly attire that he brought with him silver crown and sword as well speaking to Sir Peridan and Mr Tumnus. Corin was sat on one of the settées dressed as smartly as the rest of the men around him. The slouch in his posture was the only thing that gave away that he was bored.

"Your majesty," a voice spoke politely behind us. We both turned around to see Sir Peridan bowing. "His majesty, your brother, has asked me to escort you to the celebrations. I hope you are not too disappointed."

I could see in Susan's expression that she was surprised and I immediately began to get suspicious of Edmund's intentions. But Susan smiled and took Sir Peridan's outstretched arm and linked her arm through his as he began to lead her away towards the door. I glanced over at Corin and found him sulking. I frowned and started towards him but stopped as I felt an arm link through my own. I turned to see Edmund casually looking away even though he was holding onto me.

"Hello Edmund."

"Don't think I don't know what your plan with Corin was all about." Edmund murmured to me as he slowly led me off towards the door. _Drat!_I thought to myself but I schooled my expression to be surprised.

"Whatever plan would that be then Edmund?" I asked innocently.

"You mean to tell me that you don't know anything about Corin planning to knock a drink down my front? Or in fact that you would be away talking to Susan at the time so you wouldn't notice a thing? Ring any bells?" I glanced over at Edmund to see him raise an eyebrow at me.

"Oh, _that_plan," I turned to Edmund trying to stop the smile on my face. "Nope, I had no idea at all."

"Very funny, Alexandra." Edmund scowled at me. I grinned at him. "Honestly how old are you?"

"Um…last time I checked I was twenty." I replied sarcastically only to receive a pinch on my arm in return. "It was just a practical joke Edmund. You've been so stressed."

"Is this all because I upset Susan this morning?"

"You know what I completely forgot about that." I hit his arm and he winced. "_That_ was for upsetting Susan this morning. The joke plans were just for a laugh."

"Joke _plans_? What else have you planned?"

"Nothing, honest…just don't try the punch." I grinned and broke away quickly racing forward to link arms with Mr Tumnus. I can imagine Edmund rolling his eyes right this minute.

Once we arrived at the grand hall of the palace I was amazed at the sight. There were bright garish colours decorating the room. Fire-breathers balanced on high stone podiums blowing mile-long flames of fire. Acrobats flung themselves across the room, doing flips and somersaults before landing gracefully on another trapeze. There was a huge portrait of a horrifying creature with the head of a raven and the body of a man that I knew from my studies was the Calormen god Tash the Inexorable or Tash the Irresistible or whatever it is named.

The Ball seemed to be already in full swing as there was loud upbeat music playing in the corner as members of the Calormene court were dancing to. The music was unlike anything I had ever heard of and I found it hard to believe that it would be easy to dance to.

"These Calormen people do seem to love a dance." I heard Corin speak beside me. I hummed and stared around the room searching for someone that I didn't even know. "Have you seen those dancers over in the corner? The women over there…wait, are they even dressed?" I blinked and followed Corin's gaze before hurriedly covering his eyes and turning him away.

"I don't think you should be seeing that." I said as I led him towards Susan.

"Why not? I'm almost fifteen! I'm not a child."

"Believe me Corin; you do _not_ want to see those dancers." I saw Edmund out of the corner of my eye quickly turn away from the corner as well blushing in embarrassment. I pursed my lips and pushed on. As I reached Susan I quickly murmured in her ear what I saw and she frowned, taking Corin from me and said no more.

I headed to the drinks table by Edmund. I was just about to pick up a goblet of wine when suddenly there was a tremendous fanfare that filled the room with trumpet noise. I stood beside Edmund and stared up to see at the far end of the hall, two elaborately dressed men walking down the steps around the main throne in the room. _Great, just when I was about to get a drink..._

I recognised one of the men as Prince Rabadash, mostly from the time at the tournament. He was a fairly tall man (I say fairly because I'm not entirely sure where his head stopped and his large jewelled purple turban began) with dark skin, sporting a black goatee on the end of his chin. His eyes were like round onyxes, dark but dazzling with hidden mysteriousness that held something secret within. Rabadash was standing up straight with his arms behind looking like a proud general despite the scowl on his features. I frowned and picked up a goblet of wine taking a sip. Why would he be scowling at his own Welcoming Party? I wonder if it had anything to do with Susan, judging from what had happened just before we came down here. I walked towards Edmund hoping to get a chance to whisper to him about what I was thinking when I spotted the other man standing next to Prince Rabadash.

"In all of Narnia...Ed, he looks like a sparkly walrus!" I gaped at the sight of the Tisroc as he slowly made his way down the steps. Edmund choked on his drink and started coughing. I sighed and slapped his back. "Honestly Edmund, I thought Susan taught you to drink properly."

Edmund shot me a glare as he continued to splutter. The Tisroc was a large man, who by the looks of it wore every piece of jewellery he owned as well as his most expensive clothes to any convention. He had the same dark skin as his son but unlike his son his eyes were like little piggy lumps of coal cushioned by a round chubby face. I was struggling to hold in the giggles when the Tisroc began to slowly plod his way towards us surrounded by servants and other men of the court who I assumed were Calormen's version of noblemen, whereas his son made his way - a lot more quickly - towards Susan.

"Ah! I introduce to you all the white Barbarian King Edmund the Wise!" the Tisroc addressed his servants as he arrived.

"_Just."_ I heard Edmund mutter under his breath. I bit my lip to stop myself from blurting out an inappropriate comment.

The Tisroc turned back to us and bowed to Edmund, to which Edmund returned as was common courtesy among kings, before his eyes glanced at me. His mouth lit up in a white toothy grin. "And who is this beautiful creature? Such a fair maiden with..." His eyes flickered over my face and I knew that he had just spotted the scar on my cheek. "..._fair_ features surely has a heavenly name?"

"This is Lady Alexandra Portentia. She is a dear friend of mine who I invited on our voyage to your _wonderful_ country." I couldn't help but notice the emphasis Edmund put on the word 'dear' as he spoke. But I'm pretty sure that the emphasis on the word 'wonderful' was clearly an understatement. I smiled politely and performed a little curtsy. The Tisroc burst in delight taking my hand and kissing my knuckles.

"Beautiful! But I'm afraid to say not so much as your famed sister, Queen Susan. My son hasn't stopped talking once about her since he arrived back from your tournament." I cringed inside as the Tisroc turned to look over at Susan. He was old enough to be her father.

"I bet he hasn't." Edmund muttered in a clipped tone that I'm not sure whether the Tisroc heard.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. I'm sorry we haven't met sooner." I spoke politely turning my full attention on the Tisroc in hope of turning his attention away from Susan. The Tisroc looked back at me and a look of regret appeared on his face.

"I am too. I'm afraid that there have been many urgent matters to attend to that have taken up my time. And I am not too proud to admit that I am not as young as I once was."

"This is a wonderful party. Plenty of wine." I remarked with a nod to the bottles and jugs filled to the brim of crimson red wine.

"Ah, you see that is one of the two things that I believe makes a good celebration; plenty of refreshments and plenty of dancing girls." He let out a small wheezy chuckle as he opened out his arms in gesture to the half-naked women dancing provocatively around the room. My stomach began to churn and the wine in my mouth tasted sour as the Tisroc and his servants burst into fits of laughter. Edmund and I stood shocked.

I felt Edmund lean close to my ear. "Alexandra, Corin looks like he has had too much punch over by Mr Tumnus. I think he might need a lie down." I nodded feeling relieved at Edmund's obvious hint. I was about to turn when Edmund placed a kiss on my cheek that lingered longer than it should do. I was suddenly struck dumb as butterflies began to wriggle and squirm in my stomach. I barely noticed the Tisroc and his servants exchange pointed looks between themselves before Edmund pulled away. I tried to smile sensibly, but I could feel my mouth threatening to stretch into a dopey grin.

Something felt different about that kiss compared to the other affectionate friendly kisses Edmund and I have often exchanged when we were alone. Only kisses to the cheek or hand. It would be far too inappropriate if we kissed anything more than that. Deep inside I felt my heart flutter in excitement as my imagination popped up different possibilities about what it could mean. Did I just imagine the kiss? Did he like me? Did he really want to kiss my cheek or did he want to kiss somewhere else...like my lips? Or did he just kiss me because the Tisroc was there? Was it like some sort of alpha-male possession flaunt? Was it a '_Back off my mate or I'll beat you to a pulp_' kind of thing? My head began to ache with the confusing thoughts running about in my mind.

I managed to get a hold of Corin's drink, taking it off him despite his slightly slurred protests. I was just about to sit him down somewhere when suddenly my hand was snatched up. I looked up startled to see a tall dark haired, dark skinned man placing a slow kiss on my knuckles.

"I beg your pardon sweet white barbarian woman, but I was so overwhelmed by your foreign beauty that I just had to...introduce myself." The dark man spoke in a deep gravelly accented voice that made me want to shudder. His dark brown eyes seemed familiar but I couldn't place them. "My name is Ashonit Tarkaan. I am a close advisor of the Prince. May I have the pleasure of knowing what your name is, beautiful creature?"

I blinked and straightened up, keeping a firm hand on Corin's arm. "I'm sorry. You just took me by surprise. My name is Lady Alexandra."

"Charming." Ashonit bowed his head and placed another kiss on my hand. I felt a niggling sensation in the back of my mind.

"Sorry, but have we met before?" I asked in confusion. Ashonit smiled a little and placed another kiss further up my hand. He still hadn't let me go.

"Not that I know of, Daughter of Charn." I stared at him in shock and tugged my hand away from him.

"What did you just call me?" I frowned at him.

Ashonit glanced up at me before his eyes flickered to my neck. "Your necklace, the cornucopia, I have seen it before as a picture in a book from the Palace library. It is a symbol of your heritage."

"My heritage?"

"Indeed. It is descended down from a distinct line of sorcery dating back to the beginning of time." Ashonit leaned in close to my ear and began to whisper. "A line of Seers I believe, am I wrong?" I shuddered inside and stepped away from him.

"How do you know all of this?" I whispered wondering frantically what else this stranger knew about me.

"Excuse me are you accusing Lady Alexandra of being a witch?" Corin exclaimed loud enough so that everyone around us could hear what was being said. Ashonit turned his dark foreboding gaze on Corin and sneered.

"I don't believe it is any of your business boy," Ashonit hissed at Corin.

"I believe that it is, if you are accusing my friend of witchcraft." Corin retorted defiantly. Something close to anger flashed in Ashonit's eyes as he stepped forward.

Ashonit raised his hand. "Silence you insolent child –

"Don't you dare lay a hand on him!" I shouted stepping in front of Corin. Suddenly I froze as I remembered a fragment of the dream I had.

_My captor let go of my jaw only to strike me across my cheek. I let out a cry of pain, tears rolling down my cheeks as I tried desperately to ignore the pain. "Do I need to threaten you? Do I need to kill your little friend? And the baby?"_

_"You wouldn't...don't you even dare touch them!" I shouted throwing a rock at him and hitting him in the side of his face. Another slap struck my other cheek as blood started to trickle down my jaw._

I gasped and stared at him in shock. "It's you…you were in my dream." Ashonit's attention returned to me and I could see in his eyes a hidden malice that wasn't before on the surface a moment ago. He was in my dream. He was my captor. He _is_my captor. I wanted to get as far away from him as possible.

Sir Peridan, Susan and Edmund appeared around Corin and I forming a protective barrier between us and Ashonit. I still didn't feel safe. Edmund sent a glare at Ashonit and stepped directly in front of him, his hand teasing the hilt of his sword ready to draw it at a moment's notice. "I think you had better leave." Edmund had only spoken quietly enough for just us to hear but it felt as if his voice was the only one in the room.

Ashonit met Edmund's glare and held it for what seemed like forever. His eyes flitted toward mine as a smirk appeared on his mouth. He tipped his head in a mock bow before turning his back on us and strode swiftly away. My heart was beating a million beats a second and I began to shake.

"Come back and apologise you cad!" Corin called after the man but I grabbed his arm frantically.

"No, Corin let it go. Let it go." I tugged on his arm as I began to gasp. Images of that man coming anywhere near me caused panic to flood through my body.

"You can't let him speak to you in that way." Corin protested beside me. "Just let me go behind him and box his ears! I won't miss, I swear."

"I couldn't agree more." Edmund nodded. Corin blinked and stared up at Edmund in shock.

"Really? You'd let me hit him?"

"You will do no such thing!" I hissed at the both of them. "Honestly Edmund, I thought you were supposed to be the responsible one here!" My heart was still beating rapidly and I began to feel a little dizzy. I felt my knees wobble and I grabbed hold of Edmund just before they gave out.

"Alexandra, its okay, relax...take a deep breath." Edmund mumbled into my ear as he held me against his chest.

"Edmund, get me out of here. I need some air." I gasped. Sir Peridan and Susan were staring at us with worried glances as I struggled to regain my footing.

"What happened? Why is Alexandra like this?" Susan whispered.

"I'll explain later. Sir Peridan," Edmund spoke. "Stay here and keep an eye out for that man. Corin will know who he is. Make sure he comes nowhere near any of our party."

"Understood, your Majesty." Sir Peridan nodded and stood to alert.

Edmund led me out of the room and out into the palace gardens. It was a warm night but the air was as fresh as it could be as I breathed it in. Edmund found a bench for us to sit on in a quiet alcove of the palace gardens. Unlike the gardens at Cair Paravel where the scents of the flowers were pleasant to the nose, the flowers around us were harsh and strong, making my nose itch unpleasantly.

I shakily sat down next to Edmund who held my hand gently in his and rubbed soothing circles of the back of it. "It was him Edmund. He was the man from my dream."

Edmund swallowed and his mouth stretched into a thin line. "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive." I nodded fearing another image from my dream will appear in my mind. "It was definitely him."

"Well, I'll just go and have him arrested. You'll be safe then. He won't be able to hurt you." Edmund said but I frowned and shook my head.

"Edmund, you can't do that. It's not right. He hasn't done anything wrong yet."

"I'm not going to just sit back and let it happen. I've never seen you that scared before." He whispered to me. "And I don't ever want to see you that scared again."

I stared up at Edmund and my eyes met his. I just knew that tonight I was going to have another nightmare. After the stress and fear of tonight how could I not? I leaned closer to Edmund and pressed my forehead against his. "Sleep with me tonight."

Edmund pulled back in shock and stared at me as if I had just grown an extra head. "What?"

"I mean sharing the same bed, that's all. I feel safer with you and I always sleep better next to you anyway." Edmund visibly relaxed and let me lean my head against his shoulder. He was quiet for so long I thought he was going to refuse when he turned his head to face me.

"I'll see what I can do." He replied and fell silent, rubbing my shoulders soothingly. "Feel ready to go back in?" I reluctantly nodded, suddenly feeling very drowsy and in need of a nice hot bath and then some sleep.

We headed back into the palace slowly, Edmund keeping an alert lookout for Ashonit or anyone else who came too near. I just wanted to go to bed as quickly as possible. As we headed up the stairs to our sleeping quarters I spotted Susan and Prince Rabadash by the door of the main hall, in what appeared to be an argument. We were too far away to hear what was going on, but judging from Susan's worried glances towards the doors and Prince Rabadash's clearly irritated expression it looked as if Susan was trying to get away from him.

"Edmund look." I whispered pointing in Susan's direction. Edmund followed my gaze and felt his hand tighten around mine. Edmund stepped towards them, ready to pull them apart but stopped when Sir Peridan stepped in and pulled Susan away. They headed towards us with worried expressions all over their faces. What had happened I wonder? Was it Prince Rabadash? Did he do something to Susan? Did the Tisroc do something to offend Susan?

"What's going on? What did he do?" Edmund questioned immediately as soon as they reached us.

"Never mind Rabadash, we have something much more serious." Susan said flippantly. "Have any of you seen Corin?"

I frowned. "Corin? No I thought he was with you."

"He was but then he ran off after some boys and disappeared. I assumed he would have gone past you."

"We haven't seen him." I shook my head and began to wonder whether Corin was in any trouble.

"Great, now we have to look for Corin. Honestly that boy will be the death of me." Edmund muttered and I elbowed him in the ribs.

"Oh hush up Edmund. This is serious. He's never been to this country before, he could be lost." Susan snapped irritably.

"I'm sure he'll find his way back to us before dark. He knows where our quarters are." Edmund replied.

"But what if he gets into a fight?" Susan asked raising her arms.

"Corin can look after himself, don't worry Su. We'll just have a look around for him." I said calmly remembering the practice fights I had with Corin on the ship.

"We'll keep the doors of our quarters open until midnight but then we'll have to close them." Edmund suggested but Susan huffed.

"What if he doesn't come back after then?"

"Well then we'll send out a search party. Look Susan there's not much we can do now when it's getting dark. We'll stand a better chance during the daylight." Edmund sighed and we all agreed that that was the best form of action for the time being. Edmund linked his arm through mine and led me up the stairs.

Edmund had a point. There was not much else we could do during the night. We just have to hope that we can find Corin in the morning and that he can survive the night out of the palace. But still I felt guilty that Corin was missing. He was after all my responsibility as well as Edmund's. We had completely forgotten about Corin when I panicked.

"Edmund, what if we can't find Corin in the morning? Or at all? He was supposed to be _our _responsibility and then we lost him." I grumbled. "What would his father say? What would _Peter_ say? We could be facing an all out war between Narnia and Archenland if something happens to Corin."

"Alexandra, we'll find him." Edmund said firmly. "You need to stop worrying and you need to rest."

"But what if we can't?"

Edmund stopped and turned to face me, his hands taking hold of my shoulders. "Trust me, Corin can look after himself. He's a very resourceful boy." Edmund blinked in surprise. "I honestly can't believe I just said that."

A smile pricked at my mouth. "You _do_ care about Corin!"

Edmund shot me a reproachful look. "I wouldn't go that far."

I wouldn't let it go though. He had paid a compliment about Corin and he was not going to deny it. I'd make sure of that. "You do. Deep down inside that hard outer shell is a soft, squishy –

"Hey, don't even think about finishing that sentence." Edmund said sharply pointing a finger at my nose. I fell silent with a pout. "Now come on. I'm tired and I want to go to sleep."

"Oh fine. Spoil-sport." I grumbled and headed after Edmund. When Edmund told the others about the temporary sleeping arrangements for the night, it was agreed that I would sleep at the far end of the room by the balcony with Edmund sleeping nearby - but not close - to save being inappropriate (a point that was very much stressed from Sir Peridan, whom I suspected of being very old-fashioned), and if I had any nightmares during the night, Edmund would be able to wake me up. As I settled down for the night behind a makeshift curtain made up to save my privacy, my mind wandered. It led me down paths of what Corin might be doing now, what Ashonit was planning and how he knew about my dreams when I was struck with a thought. Ashonit had a book about my heritage. If I could get that book then I would finally be able to figure out some answers.

I closed my eyes and fell asleep with a plan. No matter what happens from now on, I am not leaving this country without that book.


	30. Prince Corin becomes Houdini

_**Hello, me again!**_

_**Here is another chapter for you all my lovely reviewers. I hope you like it. I liked writing it. Little insight of what happens in this chapter. There is; more sweet moments between Ed and Alexandra, a bit of jealousy coming from someone we all love (wink wink), Alexandra going native and not one but TWO of another person we all love. I think we know who. **_

_**I am so glad all of you like my version of Corin. If anyone wanted to know, I actually based him off one of my scouts who cracks us all up every week. So I thought he would be a perfect Corin. Can't say who it is because of privacy and everything but there you go. **_

_**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, it's been great reading what you've had to say. (Ten times better considering as I'm writing this at this second I am in the middle of suffering from a week long chest infection which doesn't seem to be getting any better.) **_

**_I won't hold you up any longer. Here is a sneak preview of the next chapter which is called _Escape from Calormen. **

**27/09/12 - As I was writing the new chapter I felt that the old sneak preview I put on last time didn't work well so I've changed it. This is the new sneak preview!**

_I wasn't at the exit. I wasn't even in the kitchens or the palace scullery. I was in a corridor of prison cells. Cold, dark and damp my nightmare had come to life. A shiver crawled its way up my spine._

**_Enjoy!_**

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart **

**Prince Corin Becomes Houdini**

I suddenly woke with a gasp, sweat dripping down my forehead as the remnants of my nightmare left my eyes. I touched my chest feeling around for the wound that had punctured through me but could not find any affliction. I swallowed as hard as I could only to find my throat and mouth as dry as sandpaper. I choked. I searched around me for a drink, peering under the curtain that had been put up to separate me from the men in the room and found one beside a dark silhouette lying beside the settee opposite me. Untangling my legs from the blanket around me, I crawled as quietly as I could over to the drink in hope that I wouldn't wake up the sleeping figure.

I knelt back on my feet and picked up the drink, taking a sip of the ice cool sherbet lemon that filled the goblet. I closed my eyes and felt the silky, tangy liquid slowly cool its way down my hot, dry throat as if it were caressing it as it went. I heard a scuffle, a quick unsheathing of a blade and a prick on my collarbone before I could even open my eyes. I peered down at the attacker and my eyes widened as Edmund glared up at me fiercely. We were both still for a moment before Edmund blinked in shock and drew his dagger away from my throat. "Oh, it's only you." Edmund whispered and sighed shakily, sitting himself up and sheathing his dagger in its scabbard lying beside him. I let out a shaky breath I didn't even know I was holding in and placed the goblet on the floor beside us. Edmund glanced up at me. "Bad dream?"

I nodded. "It looks like I'm not the only one having them tonight." I gestured to the sheathed dagger at his side. Edmund let out a dry chuckle. I sat down and crossed my legs, much like what we used to do when we were children. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Edmund shook his head. It was a rare occasion when Edmund would have nightmares. Ed was always the one who would comfort me during the night, not the other way round. The first time that Edmund had a nightmare in Narnia it was the night before the coronation when Ed dreamed that he had gotten everyone killed because he had eaten the Turkish Delight. That night I wasn't sure what to do, so I just let him lie down next to me on my bed, his head on my chest and I stroked his hair until he calmed down. But it had been years since that happened.

Ed slowly lay back down but he lifted up his blanket as an invitation. I accepted, crawling in close to his side and rested my head on his shoulder. Being this close to Edmund reminded me of when we were six, and I was sleeping over at the Pevensies. No matter how many times Mrs Pevensie tried putting me in Susan's room I'd always sneak back into Edmund and Peter's room, and into Edmund's bed. No one could explain why I did that as a child and neither could I. Edmund was my rock and my shield and that was the only answer I wanted. I could feel Edmund breathing slowly as his chest rose and fell with my hand on top of it. His hand was resting casually on my hip as he dragged the blanket over us, shielding us away from the world as we lay. My mind wouldn't rest, even when hours later the rich Calormen sun was slowly beginning to wake we had not found any rest. My eyes traced Ed's lightening silhouette as the sun shone through the thin blanket above us and only now had I noticed that Edmund wasn't wearing a nightshirt. I guess it was too hot last night to wear anything to sleep in. I let my fingers gently trace the spatter of shrapnel scars that marked Edmund's torso – souvenirs from the countless battles that had been fought over the five years the Pevensies were in rule. There was one scar in particular on his collarbone among others that I had stitched myself which I was quite proud of. It had been the first stitch I had ever made. I glanced up to see Edmund gazing at me. My heart fluttered when Edmund rolled onto his side facing me still staring at me.

"What was the dream about?" I whispered feeling now that Ed was finally ready to talk. Edmund moved his gaze and I jolted in surprise when I felt his fingertips trace down the scar on my cheek. I now understood what he meant. "It was about me wasn't it?" I looked away and felt his head nod against my own. "Did I die?" Edmund shook his head. _So it was that kind of nightmare…_I thought to myself. I felt Edmund's arms wrap themselves around my waist pulling me closer to him and he calmed down, his beating heart slowing into a steady_ thump-thump. _I tried not to wriggle, feeling a little self conscious considering there was only one thin piece of material separating my body from Ed's.

"Everyone died…" Edmund whispered and I knew that he wasn't looking at me in particular. More like looking through me. He was in his own little nightmare. "But…but _she_ had you – willingly. You wanted to be there. You had fallen for her tricks and she was torturing you. It was all my fault."

"Don't be silly." I said nudging him in his chest. "If it was anyone's fault it would've been mine for being a fool to believe her." Edmund's hands tightened around me, gripping my nightdress and began to tremor. I began to worry. I reached up and laid my hand on his cheek, rough and prickly with morning shadow. "Hey, ssh… it would never happen Ed. She's dead. She'll never come back and I'm not that stupid to fall for her tricks."

"She's a witch Alexandra. She'll find a way back. She's evil enough to figure out a way." Edmund said in a voice dripping with disgust and horror.

"But she won't now." I said firmly and kissed his collarbone seeing as it was the only thing I could reached at the time. Edmund shivered and little tiny goose-bumps covered his skin. "Are you cold?"

"It is getting a little chilly." Edmund murmured and he let me go and rolled onto his back. I lay on my side and shuffled closer to him, tracing my fingers on the scar on his stomach. There was a coolness to it that always reminded me of the creature that gave him the wound in the first place. Edmund hated it because it reminded him of his treachery but I saw it differently. I saw it as a mark of fortune – a mark to show that he was a changed person, for the better. I ran a fingertip along the edge of the scar when Edmund suddenly grabbed my wrist and held it still. I looked up to see his eyes closed. It looked like he was asleep but I knew he was too wide awake for that.

"How much sleep have you had?" I asked quietly, suddenly aware that the sun was coming up and everyone was going to wake soon. Edmund shrugged sleepily.

"One hour, maybe two." He mumbled nonchalantly. I sat up and turned to him.

"Why have you had such a little amount?" I asked when I caught sight of the empty settee opposite the fire. "Corin's still missing isn't he?" Edmund sighed and opened his eyes.

"I've been up all night keeping the door open as long as possible. I had to close it at four though." That would mean he had been awake all night. He must have been worried about Corin just as much as the rest of us.

I pursed my lips. "We'll have to look for him today. Check out the market or ask if anyone has seen him."

"Yes. That boy is going to be in so much trouble when I get my hands on him." Edmund started to fall asleep again. I didn't see the point of going back to sleep myself when we only had to get up and look for Corin in a few hours anyway. I stayed sat up next to Edmund unable to get back to sleep. I wondered what Corin was doing now. Did he manage to get any sleep last night? Was he still on the streets? I hoped he was okay.

My mind began to wander to the events of last night and the party. This place was now at the top of my list of places I never want to set foot in ever again. Everything in this place was horrible, from the disgusting display of brothels in the center of the city to the foul people who lived here. I'm sure not everyone was alike but I found it very hard to believe that judging from the people I've met so far. My thoughts unfortunately led me back to Ashonit and how he knew so much about me. He had said that he had read a book about my heritage in the palace library. I wondered how a book about my ancestors ended up in Calormen in the first place. Who wrote the book? Why did they write it? Was it supposed to be some sort of weapon for enemy countries?

I had to get that book somehow. But how would I get it when I'm supposed to be looking for Corin? I would have to find a thief. Someone who could sneak into the library, find the book and then sneak it back to me. But who would do something as risky as this? I heard a flutter over by the other settees just opposite the dimming embers of the fire. I glanced over and spotted Sallowpad nesting comfortably on a cushion. Maybe he could do it. After all, he'd be swift and he'd leave no footprints. But would he do it? Sallowpad, although very noble and courageous, absolutely abhorred robbery even if it was for someone of the same status as me.

I'll have to find someone to do it.

As the sun continued to rise, I heard everyone in the room beginning to stir. I thought it would be a good idea to slip back into my bed to avoid any awkward questions. As soon as I had pulled the covers up to my waist I heard a knock at the door. I sighed in frustration and stood up, picking up my dressing gown and went to open the door, grumbling as I went. When I opened the door I was nearly knocked aside as Ahoshta Tarkaan bumbled his way in. "Excuse me, how dare you just barge in without asking." I exclaimed as I caught my footing and straightened up. The old man spun around to face me and let his gaze travel down me before it returned to my face.

"Is the Queen Susan awake yet? Prince Rabadash (May he live forever in the glory of his father) wishes to seek an audience with her for breakfast. Alone." The old man continued on without even an apology. _That's it. No apology, no courtesy._ I thought as I crossed my arms across my front.

"I'm afraid she's not awake. I doubt she'll be able to see the Prince, we're quite preoccupied today." I said curtly stepping aside and gestured towards the door. "Now if that is all you have to say, please can you leave and then come back at a more reasonable time and not this ungodly hour." I spotted the put-off expression on his face before he straightened up and walked out of the room without saying a word. I slammed the door after him. "Honestly, what is it with these people and manners?" I muttered to myself.

"Speak for yourself," I heard Edmund call with a chuckle from behind the settee. I threw myself on the settee and peered over the back. "Dear me, Alexandra I think you've gone native."

"Hush up or get up. Your choice Ed, I'd take the latter." I muttered as I grabbed a plate and piled on some fruit for breakfast. "I'll be glad as soon as we get away from here."

"Finally, someone agrees with me." Edmund chuckled as he turned over and stood up. I glanced at the flexing muscles in his back as he bent over to pick up a clean shirt, before slipping it over his head and letting it fall like a river over a bed of smooth pebbles. I blinked as the door to Susan's room opened slowly and I spotted Susan peering through the gap in the door.

"Is he gone?" Susan whispered and I knew that she was talking about Ahoshta.

"Yes, I saw to that myself." I said feeling quite proud of myself. Susan let out a sigh of relief and opened the door. She was still dressed in her nightgown but she had a very long peach dressing gown over the top. She looked very tired, like she had spent most of last night tossing and turning during the night in bed. I wonder if she was worried about Corin as we were. "How did you sleep?"

Susan looked up at me as if she had only just noticed me. There were dark bags under her eyes and she yawned delicately into her hand as she sat demurely on the settee next to Mr Tumnus. "Always the physician, never the normal woman isn't it Alexandra?" She rolled her eyes. I couldn't stop the smirk from appearing on my lips.

"Well who else is going to make sure you're well? Edmund?" I snorted just as Ed walked around the end of the settee.

"Charming," I heard him exclaim. "Not happy at all today, are you?"

"Cut me some slack will you? I'm stressed." I said reproachfully. I turned back to Susan. "What happened last night with you and Rabadash then? I noticed you both seemed to be arguing." I remembered the two of them arguing at the entrance of the main hall.

Susan waved her hand away. "He was just annoyed because I went to look for Corin right in the middle of when we were dancing." I frowned.

"What?" Edmund exclaimed a narrowed look appearing on his face as he sat forward. "He didn't hurt you did he?"

"No of course not, why would you think that?" Susan exclaimed meeting her brother's gaze with one of her own.

"With all due respect, you're Majesty," Sir Peridan spoke suddenly as I realised that everyone in the room was slowly waking up. "Your brother is only trying to look out for you. It's only natural that we'd jump to that conclusion. You are our Queen and should be respected as such."

"I'd just wish that everyone would stop assuming the worst out of everything." Susan mumbled. "Now can we talk about something else? How are we going to find Corin?"

"I vote that we split up into groups." Mr Tumnus suggested. "That way more ground would be covered."

"I agree. He might not have stayed in the same place for the night. He would have tried to find a shelter." I nodded in agreement.

"That Ahoshta fellow sounded quite insistent this morning." Sallowpad muttered to Thornbut who was taking a sip of juice. He nodded in agreement. Edmund watched them and sighed.

"Sallowpad's right." Ed admitted reluctantly. "I think the best way to keep Rabadash out of our hair is to keep him distracted. Otherwise he could cause a lot of problems for us." I could tell that Edmund's decision was not one that he wanted. He looked back at his sister. "Could you possibly meet with him today and keep him distracted? You know I would not suggest this if I thought this wasn't necessary -"

"Of course Ed, I'll do anything if it'll help find Corin." Susan nodded readily. "Mr Tumnus can escort me as well."

"Very well, Sir Peridan, Thornbut you search the north and west sides of the city and Alexandra and I will search the east and south sides, including the market and main gate. Sallowpad, you can fly overhead. If anyone spots him bring him straight to me." Edmund made that point very clear to everyone.

"Right, we'll start looking in one hour once we're dressed and had breakfast." Susan stood up and returned to her room, closing the door firmly behind her. I felt quite sorry for Susan. It must be horrible knowing the dislike of Rabadash coming from everyone. No wonder she gets annoyed with Ed.

As everyone was started getting ready an idea came to mind about how to solve my puzzling situation. "Mr Tumnus, may I have a word in private?"

"Of course Milady," Mr Tumnus replied graciously, putting down his goblet of juice and followed me into the corner of the room away from the other gentlemen. "Is there a problem your ladyship?"

"As a matter of fact there is, Mr Tumnus." I double-checked that no one else was around us to overhear our conversation and then leaned close. "Do you remember the man from last night at the party?"

"You mean the awful cad who scared you, milady?" Mr Tumnus bristled as a frown appeared on his tired old face. "What of him?"

"He um...he knew about _my heritage_," I spoke in a hushed voice glancing around once more to check that I wasn't too loud. No one was looking our way. "He mentioned that he had read a book about my ancestors and I want to make sure that no one else can read it."

Mr Tumnus was silent for a while looking at me with a strange look I couldn't decipher. "So what you're saying is that you wish for me to..._acquire_ this book so that it doesn't fall into anyone else's hands, am I correct?"

"Yes, I would be very grateful." I crossed my fingers behind my back hoping that he would say yes, that he would help me.

Finally Mr Tumnus nodded. "I'll see what I can do." A sigh of relief escaped my lips and wrapped him in a quick hug.

"Thank you Mr Tumnus, I don't know how I'll ever repay you."

"Well, don't thank me yet. I haven't even got the book." I nodded trying to fix my composure. "I'll let you know by nightfall." With that we went our separate ways, no one even noticing what had gone on.

Four hours later I was outside of the palace with Edmund searching everywhere for Corin. We had gone down to the market, searching in every nook and cranny, asking every stranger we passed if they had seen our wayward prince, but we had no such luck. Edmund went straight on towards the main gate of the city as I started searching through the market. I hoped in vain that he would be somewhere near the stalls we had visited yesterday. It seemed the only logical place I could think of at the time that he could be. The market was as busy as ever with what seemed to be more traders and customers in than usual. Maybe they were having a sale on old produce that needed to go quickly. There was an elderly woman at the flower stall today. Usually, there was just a young woman with rosy red cheeks bustling around arranging bouquets with a spring in her step, but this woman looked like she was too sick to move. Her skin was a sickly pale grey colour and her hands shook uncontrollably when she tried to pick up a flower. I stopped at her stall.

"Hello? Are you alright ma'am?" I asked kneeling down in front of her chair. The woman looked up and stared at me as though she couldn't see me. A minute later a wide toothy smile appeared on her mouth.

"Oh hello dear, come to buy some flowers?" I sadly smiled and shook my head.

"I'm sorry; I have no money on my person today. I'm sorry if I seem rude, but you don't look so well. Is there anything wrong?" The old woman frowned and then patted my cheek gently.

"There is nothing wrong my dear, I am merely dying." She smiled and I gasped in horror. I couldn't comprehend how she could be smiling knowing this horrific news.

"Surely, that's not a good thing." The woman tutted at me as if I was an idiot.

"Not a good thing? It is a wonderful thing! I will be able to see my family soon, and the Lady will watch over me just like she watches over all her maiden daughters." The woman beamed. "Could you pass me that bouquet please?" She gestured to the pink and white bouquet on the far left hand side of the stall.

I stood up and picked up the bouquet placing them in her shaky hands. She smelled them with a smile. The younger woman with the red rosy cheeks walked up towards us from down the street with a frown on her face. "Aunty, you're going to scare away the customers. You should be inside resting."

"I know dear, I know." She blinked and stared at me. A second later she smiled. "Oh hello dear, come to buy some flowers?"

I stared after the woman as her niece helped her back in side a tent behind the stall. A sad feeling filled up inside that I couldn't get rid of. I didn't know whether to be sad or happy for her. I had seen death a lot over the few years I have trained to become a physician. I had thought there was nothing that could surprise me. Death was such a grim topic of discussion but I had never ever come across anyone who was looking forward to their death as much as that woman seemed to be. I stared at a lone bluebell on the stall and I stroked the soft silky petals.

I suddenly felt a sharp tug on my skirt and I looked down to see a small boy staring up at me. "Hola, pretty lady,"

I felt my cheeks warm as the little boy put his thumb into his mouth and began to suck it nervously. I smiled at him and kneeled down so that I was eye-level with the boy. He had very tanned skin and brown hair the shade of dark chocolate. His wide round eyes had an almond colour to them with a little speckles of brown in them. In the back of my mind he seemed a little familiar, as if I had seen him before but I can't remember where from. "Hello young man."

The little boy smiled and as if he had only just noticed hastily pulled his thumb from his mouth. The little boy had a small round face that had a bit of baby fat left and his eyes had a mischievous glint to them. He glanced around himself and then leaned in closer to me. "I've got a secret."

I couldn't help but share a grin with him. He was just too adorable to say no to. Besides, I wanted a distraction. "Oh, do tell. I promise I won't tell anyone."

"Well my -"

"Julian!" I jumped and looked up to see a tall tanned man striding towards us, a relieved expression on his face. I stood up as the man firmly grasped the boy's shoulder and turned to face him, giving him a little shake. "What have I told you about running out of my sight?"

"Lo siento, Papa," Julian mumbled his hand almost going up to his mouth but then stopped midway and hid behind his back.

"You had me worried sick." The man shook his head and pulled his son into his side. I noticed now that the man had the same dark hair as his son but his eyes were dark brown instead of almond. The man seemed quite young, in his early twenties perhaps and there was a little dark stubble on his chin. The man turned to me with an apologetic look on his face. "Lo siento, Senorita, I hope he wasn't any trouble."

"No not at all." I shook my head quickly, feeling the need to jump to the boy's defence. "He's a sweet boy. We were just having a little conversation, weren't we Julian?" I gave a sideways glance at Julian and smiled at him. He nodded back. "Are you his father?"

"Si," The man smiled squeezing Julian's shoulders proudly. As he spoke I noticed he had a strong accent that seemed familiar, but unfamiliar at the same time. I liked it though. There was a low sultry tone to it that sent little shivers up my spine.

I nodded. "That's good to know."

"Papa thinks you're the prettiest lady he's ever seen!" Julian exclaimed suddenly with a grin jumping up and down on the spot beside his father.

"Julian!" the man chastised and rapidly spoke in another language I didn't quite recognise. I noticed a pink flush creep up his neck, very much like the blush creeping up my neck this minute. "He's doesn't mean it really, I -"

"So it's not true?" I raised my eyebrow, my heart racing in my chest as I watched the man stutter over his words. I began to wonder why I had just said that. I was never like this…at least not in public…to a stranger...who also had a son.

"No, of course it isn't." The man spoke and I felt disappointed. My heart seemed to splutter as if it were an old car that was on its last legs. The man must have noticed my expression as he quickly added "Not that you aren't...beautiful to begin with..." As he said this he sounded a little out of breath even though neither of us was moving.

"Thank you." I replied in a hushed tone that was barely above a whisper.

"You're welcome, Senorita." The man bowed his head. We stood quietly staring at each other. I couldn't stop looking at his face. His tanned skin seemed slightly darker than his son's but you could definitely see the similarities between the two. I began to wonder why I was noticing these things so much about this stranger. My heart began thumping loudly in my chest that I dreaded to think that this man could hear me.

"What's your name?" I asked the man, suddenly realising that I didn't know. He was as tall as Edmund but he was a bit broader and looked a lot stronger. There was dirt and cuts all over his hands and his clothes were that of a trader's, not very expensive but smart.

"Nathaniel, Senorita."

"Alexandra!" I heard Edmund's voice call and I turned around to see Ed making his way through the crowd towards me. I turned back to Nathaniel and gave him a small curtsy.

"I'm sorry, I have to go but I'll be sure to remember that name. Maybe I will see you around." I watched as Nathaniel smiled at me. I glanced down at Julian. "And you, young man." I kissed my fingertips and then pressed them against Julian's cheek. Julian began to suck his thumb nervously again, even though there was a smile on his face. I started to walk away towards Edmund, a smile fixed happily on my face.

I had almost reached Edmund when I heard Nathaniel call behind me. "Wait, Senorita!" I stopped and turned around curiously to see him catching up to me, holding a bluebell in his hand. He was a little out of breath but he held out the bluebell. "For you,"

"It's beautiful, thank you." I took the flower and smelled it. I smiled back up at Nathaniel. "No one's ever gotten me flowers before."

"I never caught your name." Nathaniel said stepping from foot to foot.

"Oh, I'm sorry. My name's Alexandra." I held out my hand and was surprised to see him shake it. Not many people know what to do when I hold my hand out. It was like meeting someone from England. Nathaniel smiled. His smile was warm and kind and it lit up his eyes with a sparkling glint.

"Alexandra..." Nathaniel nodded with a smile on his face. "I hope we have the fortune to meet again." Nathaniel bowed his head courteously and took my hand placing a gentle kiss against my knuckles. He smelt a little of the sea, like he had been out sailing all day and had just come in. Ever since we arrived in Narnia, the sea had become one of my favourite smells. My heart gave a little flutter and he held my stare. When Nathaniel kissed my hand, it wasn't anything like Ashonit had done. It made me feel safe from danger. Nathaniel wasn't going to hurt me, he just wanted to kiss my hand and give me flowers...I suddenly noticed as he let go of my hand, just how handsome he was. He had a strong masculine look about his face and stature but his eyes were soft and round like roasted chestnuts. I had a nice feeling about him.

"Yes, I'd very much like that. Until the next time Nathaniel," I called, watching as Nathaniel turned away and ran towards his son, sweeping him up and giving him a hug before putting him down. I heard Edmund's footsteps slow to a halt beside me.

"Who was that?" I heard Edmund ask in a tone that I couldn't recognise. A small smile appeared on my face and I smelled the bluebell. It had a sweet floral scent that seemed to make my heart feel lighter. I tipped my head to the side and turned to Ed.

"A secret admirer." I replied conspiratorially before turning away and leaving him on his own, twirling the bluebell as I went. I walked by the stall that was selling the colourful silk scarves. I ran my hand along a bright orange and yellow one staring at the swirling pattern adorned on it. Edmund caught up beside me.

"I didn't know you liked flowers." I glanced back at Edmund who was now rubbing the back of his neck, even though he was trying to act casual.

"You never asked." I shrugged and moved to the next stall which seemed to be selling healing stones. "Besides I always have lots of bouquets sent to the infirmary to cheer up the patients. I pick them out myself. Didn't you know?"

"No I didn't. I always thought Ivy did that."

"Well, she helps."

"I just never thought you cared much for flowers." Edmund said glancing at me as I smelled the bluebell again. "If I had known I'd have..."

"You would've what?" I asked curiously and then halted as a thought struck me. "Hold up," I glanced at Edmund and then at the bluebell before grinning at Edmund. "Are you jealous?"

Edmund halted too, a shocked expression on his face. "What? No, I'm not jealous. Why would I be jealous?"

"I don't know. Why would you be, Ed?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not jealous, honestly I'm not." He was muttering too quickly and my smile grew bigger and bigger.

"And I'm not a simpleton Edmund. It's just a stupid flower Ed. No big deal." I smiled at him before I bumped playfully into his side. "If you really want to know, my favourite flowers are bluebells."

"Bluebells." I heard Ed mutter to himself. "_Of course_, they're blue!"

I decided to pretend I didn't hear that to save his embarrassment. I smelled the flower again and twirled it in my hand watching it spin and do pirouettes like a ballet dancer, before I pinned the flower to my dress. "Any luck on finding Corin?" I asked remembering why we came into the market in the first place.

Edmund looked up at me for a minute and then shook his head. "He's not down at the main gates and no one's seen him. To be honest I'm not surprised since the traders have come into market today. We'll find him though."

"Yeah we have too, we've got no choice. Peter is _so_ going to kill us if we come back without him." I groaned. If only we had kept a closer eye on him, then we wouldn't even be in this mess. I just hoped that Corin would be alright. Suddenly, we heard a loud squawk up in the air above our heads. We both looked up to see Sallowpad flapping his wings and hovering above us.

"Your majesty...we've found him! Corin, we've...found him!" Sallowpad panted as he slowly descended and landed on the floor in front of us. He ruffled his feathers as he tried to catch his breath. "Sir Peridan found Corin in the crowd not too far from the Palace."

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go." Edmund exclaimed as I offered my arm for Sallowpad to perch on and rest. He hopped on gratefully and gestured in the direction of the palace with his beak. We both ran as fast as we could, Sallowpad clutching hard onto my arm with his claws as we went. I was struggling to keep up with Edmund. He had always been fast but he had grown faster ever since he started training with the leopards and cheetahs. That was the way that things were in Narnia, whilst I was training to be a physician, Susan and Lucy were taught things like democracy and etiquette for Queens and Peter and Edmund were taught how to be soldiers, how to think and move like them. The country counted on them to protect them as long as they were in rule.

"Corin!" Edmund exclaimed as he saw Sir Peridan walking towards us with his hand holding tightly on to the upper arm of a scruffy little boy dressed like a dirty ragamuffin, in clothes that looked like they hadn't been near water in years. It made me wonder what on earth he had done with his clothes from the previous night. It was Corin. I let out a sigh of relief as we reached them. Thank goodness he was safe. Edmund grabbed Corin by the scruff of the neck. "Corin that was a very irresponsible thing to do. Do you know how worried everyone was? Susan's nearly beside herself with worry, how could you leave the party without telling anyone? That was a very naughty thing to do."

"Edmund calm down, you're frightening the poor boy." I spoke when I noticed the terrified look on Corin's face. I had never seen Corin look terrified of anything in all the time I had known him. He must have been through a great ordeal. I put Sallowpad on the ground and broke Edmund's hold on Corin, kneeling down in front of him.

"He must be taught that what he did was wrong. Otherwise how will he learn?" Edmund fumed.

"I don't think man-handling him will do anything to help him Ed." I snapped back as I began to check him over for any injuries he might have gotten during the night. I pressed the back of my hand to his forehead to feel it warm and feverish. There was a distinct mole on the side of Corin's throat that I was pretty sure was not there when I had seen him the previous night. At least I think it wasn't there. I frowned in concern.

"Neither will molly coddling him, Alexandra." Edmund snapped back. I stood up and narrowed my gaze on Edmund.

"He's only a boy, Edmund." I said through gritted teeth.

"He's fifteen years old –"

"_Almost_ fifteen."

"He's hardly a boy." Edmund scoffed. "He's knows the difference between right and wrong. He should take responsibility for his actions."

"Like you did Edmund?" I raised my eyebrow at him, knowing that he knew full well what I was talking about. Edmund's gaze narrowed into a glare but before he could open his mouth to say anything Sir Peridan stepped in.

"Pardon my intrusion your majesty and your ladyship, but perhaps we could move this inside the palace? We seem to be gathering a crowd." Sir Peridan cast a wary glance around the crowd and I followed his gaze. We were met with many curious looks from many of the traders who were listening to us arguing.

"I think you're right Sir Peridan. Let's take this inside." Edmund nodded stalking off in front with Sallowpad flying closely behind to catch him up. Sir Peridan turned his gaze to me and then shrugged his shoulders in an 'I don't know what's wrong with him' kind of way. I sighed and took hold of Corin, nudging him inside out of the sun. I stared down at Corin with concern.

"Corin, are you feeling alright?" I asked, squeezing his shoulder anxiously. Corin nodded quietly and my concern grew tenfold. "Are you sure? You're never usually this quiet."

"Maybe he's caught a bit of the sun." Sir Peridan suggested.

"Hmm...maybe."

It wasn't too long until we were inside the palace heading up to our quarters. Corin remained silent along the way which only increased my worry. It was strange that Corin would be so quiet, especially around Edmund. Aslan knows they both like to bicker like little children when they're around each other. I hoped that Corin didn't exactly hit his head and forget who he was. Mr Tumnus and the others were waiting for us by the time we arrived. I caught Mr Tumnus' gaze, trying to figure out whether the look was anything to do with whether he had managed to find the book or not. He did say that he would tell me later tonight.

"Corin! By the mane thank goodness you're safe!" Susan exclaimed jumping up from her seat to gather Corin in a hug. Corin stood there with a look of bewilderment, as if he had no idea who Susan was. "Don't ever do that to us again Corin, you had me so worried! And I thought we were such good friends ever since your mother died. What ever possessed you to run off like that?"

"Susan calm down and leave the boy alone." Edmund said gruffly from the other side of the room. I shot him a look to which he ignored. He turned to Sir Peridan behind me. "Sir Peridan close the door and keep a look out for anyone who might listen in." Sir Peridan nodded and did as he was told, the perfect obedient Knight he had sworn himself to be when he first pledged his allegiance to the Narnian crown. As soon as the door was closed and guarded, Edmund turned to Susan with a look of concern. "Now sister what did you want to tell me that was so urgent?"

I raised an eyebrow at Susan as I led Corin to lie down on one of the settées. Now that I was looking more closely at him like a doctor would a patient, I noticed the sickly pale pallet of his skin and the warm clamminess of his forehead. He was really unwell. As I got up to grab a goblet of water I glanced over at Susan. She leant forward and put her head in her hands with a groan.

"Oh Edmund, I think I have made a very terrible mistake." I turned my full attention on Susan now, watching her as she looked guiltily up at everyone in the room. "I am so very sorry for bringing you all here."

"Slow down, Sue. Tell us what happened." Edmund said calmly taking a seat next to his sister.

"When I met with him today his behaviour seemed a little...off. Not like he usually was on our other visits and certainly not like when he visited us in Narnia. He seemed like a totally different person."

"A beast in his own den," Thornbut spoke gravely and took a sip of wine. "I knew this was a trap."

"Thornbut, not now." Sallowpad chastised him in a hushed voice, glancing at Susan as he spoke, wary of her high emotions. Susan looked like she was about to cry.

"This is all my fault." Susan grumbled and wiped a tear from her cheek. "If only I had listened to you all. Now we will never leave this horrid place."

"What do you mean?" Edmund asked stiffly. "Did he threaten you?"

Susan tipped her head to the side in an uneasy gesture. "Not in the literal sense, but he did hint that I was going to be his queen no matter what and that there was no need for me to return to Narnia."

A wave of fury flew through me and I scooped up a pile of ice, wrapping it in a bit of material I cut from a pillow and place the pack on Corin's head hoping to cool down his temperature. I sharply turned my gaze back to Susan. I seemed to have caught the attention of everyone in the room. "So he blackmailed you. How dare he? He's saying that if we leave Susan here to become his wife then we would be free to go back to Narnia unharmed."

"That's a threat of war that is!" Thornbut hissed and everyone nodded in grave agreement. Edmund wrapped his arm around Susan's shoulders and let lean against him comfortingly, as she started to softly cry.

"P-please forgive me Edmund." Susan hiccupped into his shoulder. Edmund rubbed her arm soothingly.

"Susan, I'd be ashamed if you did accept the nasty brute as a husband. You deserve ten times a gentleman than he can ever be." My heart tugged a little at the sight. Edmund was just so sweet sometimes. As he spoke my mind wandered a little back to the man I had met today. Nathaniel. He seemed like the perfect gentleman. I pictured the moment when Nathaniel kissed my hand and felt my heart flutter in my chest. A small smile broke on to my lips before I even realised what had happened.

I shook my head when I realised the conversation had moved on. Edmund was stood up pacing back and forth on the carpet in front of Susan, deep in thought. "How would we go about escaping under the Tisroc's nose?"

"What about a distraction, your majesty?" Thornbut suggested. Edmund shook his head.

"What if someone got captured? There is too much risk."

Mr Tumnus cleared his throat and everyone turned their attention to him. "Perhaps if we sneak through the one of the secret passageways behind the servants' quarters we might be able to get back to the harbour in around an hour."

"How do you know there is a secret passage behind the servants' quarters?" I asked suspiciously.

He stared back at us all with a guilty expression. "I regret to say that I have looked for one ever since we came here. After the meeting with the Vizier, I deduced that nothing good would ever come out of this trip. And I must say that I have been found correct." He didn't seem at all happy that he had been found right.

"Very well, that seems like our best option, unless anyone has any better ideas." Edmund surveyed us all and no one spoke. He sighed. "Right, so we will escape tonight when everyone else is asleep and then we'll sail on to Narnia before anyone will ever have known we were missing."

Everyone agreed with the plan and began to start making provisions for the journey. I thought it would be better for Corin to get some rest before we all set off. Since Susan and I were not going to being sleeping in our room tonight I thought it best for Corin to sleep in there. I closed the door and turned around to see Edmund standing close to me. My heart began to race and my palms grew sweaty at the sight of him. Edmund looked down at my dress to where the bluebell was now pinned. I stared at the expression in his face and found that I couldn't decipher the meaning behind it. Edmund lifted his hand and brushed his fingertips against the petals and frowned. "Edmund, is everything alright?" I asked unsure of what to say.

Edmund dragged his gaze from the flower with a small strained smile up to me. "Nothing, I'll see you later Alexandra." With a quick peck on my cheek Edmund sped away to talk to Sir Peridan of some of the details of the plan no doubt. I was left feeling disappointed and more confused than I had ever felt before in my life. What on earth was all that about? I looked up to see Susan staring at me with a look of concern on her face. Could Susan possibly know what was wrong with Edmund?

I suddenly heard a crash and a good deal of fumbling from inside Corin's room and I frowned. Was Corin up? Why was he making so much noise? I leaned in closer to the door and listened through the wood. Corin was talking. To himself I presume seeing as there was no one else in the room when I put him in there. Maybe the heat was starting to make him hallucinate. Maybe he was more unwell that I thought. "Corin? What's going on, Corin?" I heard a shushing noise from the other side of the door. Taken aback, I gripped the doorknob and slowly turned it. "Corin you had better be decent, I'm coming in now..."

I opened the door and was met by the most peculiar sight. There was two Corin's standing near the window of the room. One dressed in royal clothes like he had worn last night and the other dressed in scruffy peasant clothing. I felt my jaw drop in astonishment.

"What on earth is going on in here?"


	31. Escape from Calormen

**Hello I'm back!**

**First off, I can't begin to even tell you how sorry I am for this being so late. The world just seems to hate me and my creativity for some reason. Started off with writing about half of the chapter before realising that the preview I left in the last chapter wouldn't fit at all so I changed it. Then I got writer's block and then schoolwork got in the way. I was going to update on Thursday but then my kitten Roly, who I raised from birth for six months, died and I've been upset every night since then. I just haven't felt like doing anything. Roly was my little baby y'know?**

**I'm crying again, sorry. If anyone wants to see a picture of Roly she is my profile pic.**

**Right, onwards** **before my laptop short-circuits, thank you everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Your reviews are deeply appreciated right now. Welcome to the story **_**ChocolatSugar, magiclover222 **_**and **_**Silver Eyed Slayer. **_**Hope you like my story and I'm looking forward to hearing from you.**

**Here is a preview of the next chapter **_Moonlit Conversations__**:**_

_Ever since the White Witch's reign of terror and sorcery began just over one hundred years ago, the question of her rise to power is a controversial one. Exactly who is to blame for our oppression? Who is the villain responsible for freeing the unlawful and unjust claim to the throne? Was it Jadis herself? Was it her minions who turned to the dark power and the greediness of the White Witch's promises? Was it Aslan? All of these theories may bear a ring of truth but my own theory rests with the heartless betrayal of someone whom everyone thought could trust including heartbreakingly, our beloved Queen Swanwhite herself._

_Lady Indina, Royal Physician and Ward of Queen Swanwhite._

**Hope you like it. Constructive criticism is welcome. I'm still not sure about the ending so tell me what you think. Enjoy!**

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Escape from Calormen**

A moment later the Corin in the scruffy clothes quickly climbed up on to the window ledge. "Corin!" I exclaimed lunging forward to try and grab hold of the back of his shirt. He slipped through my fingers and fell out of the window.

I screamed as Corin fell down and down the side of the palace, landing in a heap on a large metal roof of a greenhouse in the garden below us, before rolling on to the paved granite floor with a thud. "CORIN!"

"Yes? I'm right here." I turned back to see the other Corin dressed in the royal clothes he was in last night, albeit a little dirty and torn but a lot less scruffy than the other Corin. My head pounded in confusion.

The doorway suddenly filled with people as they came to figure out what the commotion was. Edmund, Sir Peridan and Susan came in first and immediately their eyes fell on Corin in confusion, probably trying to figure out what he had done with his scruffy clothes. Edmund glanced at me. "What is going on? Why did you scream?"

"There was another Corin! The one in the rags we found today, he just jumped out the window!" I exclaimed pointing out of the window. Susan ran forward and poked her head out of the window.

"Alexandra, there is no one there." I shook my head and peered out of the window searching the courtyard below. The courtyard below was empty.

"He was right there!" I pointed to the greenhouse. Susan stared at me in shock. I shook my head defiantly. "I am not mad Sue! I know he was there. Corin, you saw him didn't you?"

Corin looked down guiltily at his feet. Sir Peridan stared at Corin seriously. "Prince Corin, did you or did you not see another...you?"

Corin looked up sadly and started picking at a loose thread on his sleeve. "He asked me not to tell anyone." A flood of relief filled my body now that everyone knew that I was telling the truth. I don't think I could bear being thought mad again.

"Alright everyone get in the living room. Now." Edmund ordered and everyone immediately did as they were told. I followed at the back feeling a little shaken up about what had happened. Was the other Corin alright? How could there be two Corins? Where had the real Corin been whilst we had the fake Corin? As soon as everyone was seated on the settees, questions were being flown everywhere.

"Who was that boy?"

"Where have you been Corin? We were worried sick."

"If you're the real Corin then who was he?"

Edmund held up his hand and immediately everyone fell silent. Ed turned to Corin. "Right Corin I think you have a lot of explaining to do. Start from the beginning. Where did you go when you left the party last night?"

Corin sighed and sat up straight on the settee next to Susan. "Well, as soon as Lady Alexandra and yourself left the hall I heard a band of young boys – they were thirteen by the way before I go any further – making the most horrid jokes about Queen Susan, saying that she was...no I shall not repeat what those rat-scallions said. Excuse my language, Queen Susan but that is the only word I could describe them as." He apologised to Susan who nodded her consent back. "Anyway, I walked up to the little villains and told them to apologise for making such a horrid remark but they refused. I threatened that I would box them if they didn't and they ran away. Being a gentleman that I am I chased after them and demanded that they fight my honourable challenge and that I would not leave until I was satisfied. Being the cowards that they were they ran and ran shouting back over their shoulders that they would get their brothers who were much older and stronger than them to fight me instead.

"I finally caught up to them and taught them a lesson that they would not forget in their lifetime. They did manage to give me a black eye but other than that I came out unscathed, see." Corin turned his head up so that the light from the window shone onto his bruised eye. There was only a small amount of swelling and a light yellowy-grey colouring on the skin. I picked up the cloth I had cut earlier and put some more ice in it before placing it on Corin's eye, telling him to hold it there until the swelling went down.

"Dear me Corin, surely you know that a gentleman does not go round looking for fights – especially if those fights are against thirteen year olds, who don't know any better." Susan chastised lightly. Corin looked up at her in protest.

"But they knew _exactly_ what they were doing. They were calling Lady Alexandra a witch amongst other unspeakable things as well." I felt Edmund's eyes on me as he heard this. I felt embarrassed. I turned away and tried to busy myself as if I could try to fool them into thinking I was alright and it didn't bother me. "I just lost it. Anyone would have if you heard the stuff I was hearing."

"It's alright. What happened next?" Edmund nodded continuing on the discussion.

"Well, by the time I had finished with them I tried to get back to the Palace, but there were guards at every gate. I couldn't risk myself being seen. Especially since that cad turned up as well." Corin spoke as if he had tasted something disgusting. I glanced up at Corin fearfully, a niggling feeling at the back of my mind hinting that the cad was someone I didn't want to know.

"Was it Ashonit?" Edmund demanded, his whole demeanour changing protectively. Corin nodded with a grimace. My heart began to race with panic and my hands began to shake. Images of him from my dream filled my mind; hurting me with his bare hands, whispering his chuckling threats in my ear, his face turning into a grotesque beast when he was angry.

"He looked to me as if he was bribing the guards, handing them money and orders."

"Did you hear what they were?" Sir Peridan asked sincerely, a thoughtful look on his face.

Corin shook his head. "I was too far away to hear him but I can bet my inheritance that it wasn't good." I accidently knocked over a goblet of water onto the floor as my shaking hands brushed against them. _Oh shoot!_I thought to myself as I gathered up a cloth and knelt down, scrubbing it up as hard as I could. Corin stared at me in surprise. "Lady Alexandra, you're shaking, are you alright?"

I nodded and painting a strained smile on my face but I don't think he bought it. Out of the corner of my eye I saw someone kneel down in front of me and take my shaking hands. "Alexandra, leave it. Get up." Edmund whispered in my ear helping me up and sitting me down on a settee. He sounded so gentle but his touch was firm and constant, becoming the rock that I needed. Edmund sat down beside me and took my hand in his, rubbing soothing circles on it as a means to calm me down. He turned his attention back to Corin and nodded for him to continue.

"Um...yes, I figured I had to find some shelter for the night. So I slept in the doorway of that brothel we went past when we arrived. It was the worst night sleep I have ever had." Corin let out a shudder as his face took on a haunted look. I grimaced at the thought of Corin sleeping just outside that horrid place.

"How did you know it was a brothel?" Thornbut asked him shrewdly, eyeing him suspiciously.

Corin rolled his eyes. "I may be a Prince but that doesn't mean I don't know what goes on between a man and a woman." A mischievous smirk suddenly appeared on his mouth. "How did _you_ know it was a brothel Thornbut?"

"Corin!" Susan gasped and reprimanded him with a small smack on his arm.

Corin winced and glanced at Susan sheepishly. "Sorry, I was just trying to lighten the mood."

"That was a poor joke your highness," Mr Tumnus tutted and shook his head. Edmund shook his head tiredly.

"So why didn't you come and find us this morning?" Susan asked him.

"Well I tried to but those boys from last night had found me so I had to run and avoid them as much as possible. I ran around to the palace gardens and recognised the window so I started climbing to get in when the coast was clear. When I got in through the window I discovered I had a double by the name of Shasta – that was that boy's name by the way – and he asked me not to tell anyone that he knew of your plans to escape tonight. He swore he wouldn't tell anyone and I believe him." Corin finished earnestly.

"But how could there be two of you?" I asked still confused on having seen two of them. Corin shrugged his shoulders. No one seemed to be able to come up with an explanation. Edmund stood up and gazed around at us all.

"We'll contemplate that later on but for now we need to prepare to get out of here." Everyone readily agreed and began to busy themselves once more. I caught Edmund's eye and stood up gesturing towards the bedroom. A moment later I felt Edmund's hand on the small of my back as I led him into the room and pushed the door so that it was ajar.

"He's planning something, I know he is." I whispered to Edmund feeling my hands fidget in front of me. "But what could he be planning?"

"I don't know, Alexandra." Edmund took my hand in his and pulled me towards him. I wrapped my arms around him and laid my head on his chest, feeling his strong arms wrap around me. "You need to calm down. You've been badly shaken and it's not good to panic."

"Edmund I don't feel safe here anymore. Those guards are going to be looking for me and when they find me they're going to kill me I know it." I was certain that Ashonit was bribing those guards to find me, to do his bidding instead of the Tisroc.

I felt Edmund's hands on my face as he lifted my head up. "Alexandra I will get you out of here. You've got to trust me."

"I do trust you." I watched as a smile appeared on his face as he then kissed my forehead. Like the kiss at the ball, this one seemed to linger and sent delightful shivers everywhere throughout my body. My fingertips tingled with an itch to touch Edmund's skin. I spied the top of Ed's shirt which was open to reveal his collarbone. "Ed?"

"Yes," Edmund murmured as he pulled away slightly.

"Why did you kiss me?" I asked curiously, my eyes distracted by the rapid pulse in his neck.

"Sorry?"

"At the party in front of the Tisroc, why did you kiss me?" I could see a little bit of stubble along Edmund's jaw. When Edmund didn't answer straight away I glanced up at Edmund's eyes. He was frowning.

"I...I don't know. It felt like a good idea at the time." Edmund shrugged and it felt like a slap. I let go of him and stepped back out of his arms. Before either of us could speak there was a knock on the door as Sir Peridan stepped through.

"Excuse me your majesty and your ladyship, but we are all packed and ready to go." Edmund nodded, dismissing Sir Peridan before turning back to me with a confused expression.

"I think we'd better get going." I murmured unable to look at him as I picked up my Sais from my bedside table and brushed past him through the door behind him, fastening on the blades around my waist as I went. _It felt like a good idea at the time? What the heck does that even_mean_?_ I thought bitterly to myself. Of course he was showing off in front of the Tisroc. Of course he was trying to show everyone that I was his – even though I'm _not_– and that nobody could ever have me but him. My heart felt crushed. Why would Edmund do that? He's never been the possessive type. Or controlling. So why would he do it? Maybe he doesn't like me in that way after all. But then why would he kiss me? He could've have done something different like...I don't know, anything! Just _not_ kiss me.

_Men! Why are they so flipping confusing?_I thought to myself bitterly. As our group began to quietly leave I trudged on behind everyone else, thinking to myself as we escaped. I should have been wary. I should have been alert but I couldn't get my mind to focus. When we reached the passage that Mr Tumnus had mentioned – a great tapestry depicting a beautiful dark haired goddess – Edmund froze in front of me listening carefully holding up his hand to signal everyone to hush. A deathly silence fell upon us as Edmund listened. There was a faint murmur of voices matched with footsteps coming our way. In a hurry, we all bustled into a corridor behind the tapestry and held our breaths as two soldiers stopped outside of the tapestry. I could see their shadows growing bigger and closer from beneath the carpet. My heart hammered in my chest as I backed away into a warm firm wall. I felt his arm wrap around me and place a finger on my lips. The faint smell of ginger, earth and rose filled my nose as Edmund kept me quiet.

"Wait, run that through me again, Tarkas?" one of the soldiers spoke.

"Don't be so thick. We go in, grab the women, kill the men and come back out. Simple." replied the other soldier gruffly.

"And then what?"

"We give the queen to the Prince and the witch to Ashonit. Were you even listening to the plan?" My heart nearly gave out at that moment. They were after us. They were going to kill Edmund and all the men but take me and Susan. I felt Edmund tense up behind me. We had to stay quiet or else be discovered.

My nose began to itch as Edmund's scent wafted up my nose. I tried rubbing my nose and breathing harshly through it but it all seemed to aggravate my nose more. The itch grew and grew until I felt as if my nose was going to burst when suddenly Susan sneezed loudly behind us.

"What was that?"

The tapestry was pulled back and suddenly we were met with two large burly men dressed in armour with curved swords hitched at their waists. We stared at each other for a moment before I was pulled back behind Edmund as Sir Peridan and Thornbut lunged at the soldiers cutting them where they stood. They fell with a thud. They didn't even have chance to raise their weapons. A sneeze erupted suddenly out of me and I stared surprised around at everybody staring back at me.

"Bless you, Milady." Mr Tumnus uttered. I felt my cheeks warming brightly. Suddenly there was a rumbling noise of rapid footsteps steadily growing louder as they headed towards us.

"I think we had better go." I spoke just as a shadow appeared on the floor. "Run!" We ran down the dark passageway behind us as carefully as we could, our arms brushing against the cold rough stone wall as we ran in single file. I was blind. I could not see where I was going. Every few metres I would bump into someone or trip up over my feet. The only consistency I had was Edmund's hand on the small of my back guiding me as I went.

I felt as if I was back in Mr Beaver's secret tunnel. The sound of the soldiers behind us reminded me of the wolves that chased us, practically biting at our heels. My heartbeat matched step for step the pounding of our feet smacking the stone floor and the harsh breathing of our gasps. Up ahead I heard Susan skid and tumble to the ground with a yelp. "Susan!" Edmund called behind me as he brushed past me, making his way to his fallen sister. I felt lost in this darkness. Everything was just so disorienting. I could hear deep shouts echoing down the tunnel but I couldn't tell how far away they were. Maybe they were at the other end of the tunnel or maybe they were just right behind me. I felt a hand on my elbow let out a shriek, unsheathing my Sais and turned to cut down whoever had a hold of me.

"Keep going straight milady." I heard Sir Peridan command pushing me in front of him and let go. "Thornbut and I will hold them off. Keep going!"

I stopped and turned back towards Sir Peridan's voice, worried for the both of them. "What about you?"

"Just go!" Thornbut cried just before he let out an eye-watering battle cry that echoed all the way down the tunnel, followed by the sound of the of sword clashing against sword and bloody cries of agony as what I hoped were Calormen soldiers.

I carried on cautiously running as fast as I could let myself go, slipping and skidding now and then on a slimy patch of stone. Up ahead there was a dim orange light just to the left hand side of the corridor. I turned towards it, clambering faster, scraping and bruising my arms, shoulders legs until I was completely covered in dirt and blood. When I reached the end of the corridor I found a flaming wooden torch sitting in an iron pyre on the wall. I lifted it away surprised at the weight of the torch and I lit the corridor in front of me.

I wasn't at the exit. I wasn't even in the kitchens or the palace scullery. I was in a corridor of prison cells. Cold, dark and damp my nightmare had come to life. A shiver crawled its way up my spine. I backed away out of the corridor but the imprint of the hallway was ingrained on my mind. This place was real and this is where I was going to be locked away. I had to get out.

I turned and ran away putting as much distance between me and that horrid place as possible. I found myself back where I started before I took the wrong turn, running for my life down the corridor on the right. I hoped I hadn't gone the wrong way again but when I heard fighting up ahead of me I knew I was heading towards the exit. Sir Peridan and Thornbut were fighting Calormene soldiers up ahead whilst Edmund, Susan and Prince Corin were being led away by Mr Tumnus. Edmund slowed to a stop and stared back at the others who were struggling to hold the soldiers back.

Suddenly the sound of the warning bell sounded in the palace followed by the sound of marching troops. The Tisroc has found we have escaped. I knew that unless we got out of the country right this minute we would be caught. I ran towards Edmund, grabbing his arm and pushed him ahead towards the docks. "Alexandra, you're alright! Where did you go?"

"I'll tell you later on the ship, just keep moving!"

"What about Sir Peridan and the others?" Edmund glanced back at them again. Sir Peridan and Thornbut were two ants amongst a swarm of wasps in the distance as the fought against the Calormene guards. They must have known that they would be dead within minutes if they stayed because the next minute the swarm of Calormene soldiers was steadily growing larger as they ran closer towards us.

"He's right behind us. Just get on the ship for Aslan's sake." Susan shouted as glanced back behind me. I followed her gaze and my heartbeat sped up. The soldiers were almost upon us. I leaped on to the dock and sprinted up the bridge to the deck of the _Splendour Hyaline,_unsheathing my Saes as I went.

As soon as my gaze fell upon the deck I was a little overwhelmed with the activity bustling throughout the ship. The Captain of the ship (a man I didn't talk to personally but Edmund and Susan held a high opinion of) was barking orders at the sailors, orders so loud and bold that it would make Blackbeard blush. Susan was knocking an arrow on her bow, ordering the archers to ready themselves along the starboard side of the ship.

"Ready! We must help Sir Peridan and Thornbut get away. Protect this ship!" Susan commanded as she drew back her bowstring and aimed. When she let the arrow loose a Calormen soldier fell to the ground with the arrow lodged in his chest. I spotted a pale Corin shaking beside the mast staring in terrorised awe at Susan as she shot down another soldier.

"Corin what are you doing? You need to get below decks!" I grabbed Corin's shoulders and dragged him towards the hatch.

"B-but I can help!" Corin protested when he realised what was happening. I pulled open the hatch doors to reveal a bare wooden staircase that led to the bottom of the ship. Down there Corin would be safe and out of danger. Well, unless the ship gets hit below the water and the ship sinks.

"Out of the question. You're already in huge trouble so get below and stay there." I pushed Corin towards the stairs and he headed down out of sight. Closing the hatch door I felt the ship shudder as it started to pull away from the dock.

"Susan what's going on? I thought we were waiting for Sir Peridan and Thornbut." I stumbled over to Susan as she held on tightly to her bow.

"We are but if we are attacked whilst we are still in the harbour we'll be dead." Susan shot down another soldier and reached behind her for another arrow only to find an empty quiver. "Oh no, I'm out of arrows."

There was a sound of feet scraping against wood as Edmund and Sir Peridan heaved Thornbut on board. Thornbut was draped unconscious over both Edmund and Sir Peridan. Edmund turned towards me and frowned. "Alexandra, I need your help."

I shook myself out of the surprise and got to work. "Get him below decks." I ran over to the hatch and opened it up stepping aside to let them past. Just as I headed down I felt the ship shudder underneath my feet as we gained turbulence sailing away from the harbour.


	32. Moonlit Conversations

_Hello, everybody._

_Well, it is now 02.37am on the 2nd Feburary 2013, I am tired out of my mind but still here I am finally uploading the chapter which has been bugging me so bad for the past few weeks to get finished. Believe me I wanted this to be uploaded around christmas time but life decided to throw some obstacles. Quite depressing ones really but who cares about all that? I certainly don't at the moment. So to business..._

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter and I'd just like to say I am shocked everyday to see some familiar names reviewing each chapter. It's really comforting to know that even though my timekeeping isn't all that great I still have loyal readers. So, so grateful here. :) Please continue. I love you all. Things to look out for in this chapter is mostly we have finally got an account of what happened to Indina and a lovely milestone being broached between Edmund and Alexandra... I hope you all like it. :)_

_I don't have a snippet preveiw for you this time because I'm still not sure about the tone of the chapter yet but the chapter title is **Anvard in Trouble. **__Watch this space though. I have been known to have sporadic moments where I will update at random moments. Just look for changing dates..._

_Please review. Don't be afraid to criticise a little if you think it will help. I'd really like to hear from all of you. :)_

_Enjoy!_

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**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Moonlit Conversations**

My body was burning with fatigue as I pushed myself into the middle of the battle. I had lost sight of Lucy hours ago and Corin was no longer in the hiding spot that we had put him in. There was nothing else that I could do apart from look for them among the throng of soldiers battling in the middle of the battlements. Both Narnian and Calormen soldiers were cut down as the battle entered its second hour. But I couldn't help everyone, there was no one else to help the wounded apart from the very few of the Anvardians who worked up in the castle of King Lune and even they were working at their full capacity.

A red fletched arrow flew by just inches from my left shoulder and stuck in the ground next to a dead faun. My heart thumped harder against my ribcage as I stumbled backwards out of the way, tripping over a fallen sword and landing on my back on top of a cold stiff body. I bit back a scream as I scrambled away. The world around me spun so fast it made me sick and light headed, until my eyes landed upon a figure far across the field near the battlements of the castle walls, struggling to push back two soldiers with just his sword and fists. He was failing.

I found myself running towards Edmund feeling my hands reach to my belt and pull out my Sais. As I ran my eyes fell upon an archer aiming his bow at Edmund. He let an arrow fly heading straight towards Edmund and Edmund wasn't moving. He didn't even see it as it struck him in the chest.

I woke with a gasp clutching my chest as if I had been pierced with the very same arrow that had pierced through Edmund's. I sat up in my bed and reached over to my bedside table to light a candle. A flickering flame the size of my little fingernail dimly lit up my room, chasing away most of the shadows. The gentle rock of the ship helped me to remember where I was. I sighed and stared around my cabin. My gaze fell upon Susan's empty side of the bed that I was in. She must not have come to bed after tending to Thornbut – _Sir _Thornbut now after Edmund knighted him because of his bravery – and Sir Peridan.

I heard a quiet knock at my door. I frowned as I got out of bed and wrapped my dressing gown around myself to keep my warm, padding my way over to the door and teased it open. "Lady Alexandra?" Mr Tumnus whispered as I let him in.

"Mr Tumnus, what are you doing here at this time?" I asked shutting the door behind myself, frowning at Mr Tumnus as I headed over to sit on my bed. Mr Tumnus stared at me as he stepped from hoof to hoof.

"I'm sorry for the intrusion milady, but I thought it better to talk to you in private and not out in the open." Mr Tumnus spoke politely, standing up straight with his arms behind his back. I had only just noticed in the dimness of the room that he was holding something behind his back.

"Did you find it then Mr Tumnus?" I whispered anxiously, my fingers twitching in anticipation. Slowly he nodded and revealed a thick leather bound tome. I stood up cautiously, eyeing the tome with suspicion. This tome contained my heritage. This would be the moment where I find out about how my dreams came to be. Slowly I reached out and tentatively touched the thick leathery spine of the book, almost afraid that it would crumble to pieces if I was too rough. I took the book from Mr Tumnus and flipped open the cover. There was one small paragraph sat in the centre of the page scribbled in faded black ink.

_The Rise of Terror_

_A documented account of the White Witch's rise to power and tyranny._

_Researched and scribed by Tumnus T. Faun._

"_Tumnus_?" I glanced up at Mr Tumnus curiously. Mr Tumnus nodded in acknowledgement, his hands rubbing together nervously in front of him.

"My great-grandfather." Mr Tumnus spoke and judging from my surprised reaction he quickly added "I was just as surprised as you are. I've admittedly read the first page but only because I was curious." From the dim light I noticed the guilty expression on Mr Tumnus' face.

"It's alright, I understand." I sat down on the edge of my bed gesturing with a nod of my head that Mr Tumnus some sit down with me. He gratefully obliged. We both watched as I shakily turned over the first couple of pages which were blank. Suddenly Mr Tumnus' hand stopped mine. I looked up in surprise.

"Milady, before you go on, I just want you to know that I don't think any different of you from the first time Lucy introduced you to me. No matter what you may read." I nodded feeling that if I opened my mouth I would say something stupid. I turned the page and read.

_Ever since the White Witch's reign of terror and sorcery began just over one hundred years ago, the question of her rise to power is a controversial one. Exactly who is to blame for our oppression? Who is the villain responsible for freeing the unlawful and unjust claim to the throne? Was it Jadis herself? Was it her minions who turned to the dark power and the temptations of the White Witch's promises? Was it Aslan? All of these theories may bear a ring of truth but my theory rests with the heartless betrayal of someone whom everyone thought we all could trust, including our beloved Queen Swanwhite herself. _

_Lady Indina, Royal Physician and Ward of Queen Swanwhite._

I let out a breath I didn't even realise I was holding, turning the pages until I stopped on another passage. At the top of the page was a small diagram of my necklace. The golden horn shining brightly as it held the overflowing jewelled fruits in its mouth. There was a small description about my necklace:

_The Cornucopia, although not much is known about it in this world, it is said to be the symbol of fertility and prosperity._

"Well I already knew that..." I murmured to myself wondering why it hadn't occurred to me before. The cornucopia was an object from the Greek myths I read almost every night. It was said the cornucopia was the horn from the goat that suckled Zeus when he was a babe and hidden from his Titan father, Cronos. The horn was given to Zeus and had immediately filled with fresh fruit and meat to feed Zeus. But other interpretations of the Cornucopia stated that it symbolised fertility, the ability to have children. So what did it have to do with my dreams? I decided to read on, searching for clues and scraps of information about my mother.

"Milady?" Mr Tumnus whispered next to me. I looked up at him to see that his hands were outstretched towards mine, gesturing for the book. "May I help you with anything? You seem a little shaken."

I blinked and took a deep breath, realising that my hands were trembling so much a small tear has appeared at the top left hand corner of the page I was holding. "Perhaps it's for the best. Can you look for anything to do with my mother? Indina..."

"Certainly." He nodded and swiftly, but more carefully than I, flicked through pages until he stopped about two thirds of the way through it. "Here we go..." Mr Tumnus carefully placed the book on my lap and biting my lip uneasily, I slowly read.

_The death of our beloved Queen Swanwhite was an event that plunged our kingdom into a bitter mourning. Queen Swanwhite was the most remarkable Queen to have ever come to the throne since Queen Helen at the beginning of our world. My resources tell me that many Narnians today such as the Badgers of the Western Wood remember the exact day that our queen was brutally murdered. "The world seemed colder than before." Spoke a badger I had interviewed for this account. "It was as if the kingdom had been murdered as well. We had experienced a wonderful spring, all the plants were beginning to bloom and all the pregnant mothers were finally giving birth. It was a wonderful time to live in. Then suddenly one morning there was the coldest wind blowing fiercely through the trees and the first few snowflakes were beginning to fall from the sky. It was then we knew that our Queen was dead." This was the day that our queen was betrayed by her ward Lady Indina. _

I felt my eyes begin to fill with tears but I roughly wiped them away before they fell down my cheeks. Taking a breath I turned my attention back to the page.

_Lady Indina was an unusual woman. Almost all of my sources from within Cair Paravel have commented within varying degrees that the ward was a sufferer from paralysing "nightmares" which would wake her with screams during the night. One source spoke "It was a terrible fright being woken up like that especially when all you want to do is have a full nights sleep after a hard day's work tending the Queen and her gardens. She sure did love her gardens." Another source revealed to me a rumour about the ward's origin which according to accounts of history and stories from the badgers bears a ring of truth. "She was never here when the kingdom began no, she came after. There was a storm one day in Lantern Waste and the next day, in walks this tall pale woman asking for a job as a physician. No one had ever heard of her nor had they ever seen her before. She just appeared out of the blue. The Queen liked her though and warmed up to her very quickly. Always thought that was suspicious." _

_Apart from her unusual arrival at the Cair, Lady Indina started off her life very quietly, just getting on with her business and doing her job but then the dreams began. Rumours grew around Lady Indina and started to circulate into accusations of witchcraft. "She had all these new ideas of medicine that no one had ever heard of, but they worked. There was no logic behind her cures." stated Nurse Floom, head faun at Cair Paravel. "I wouldn't rule out that her cures weren't actually cures at all but were in fact sorcery. Black magic, like that of the Witch's!"_

_Upon hearing these rumours, Queen Swanwhite granted Lady Indina a month's leave away from the controversy around the accusations. Lady Indina disappeared at that moment. "No one knew where she disappeared to but she wasn't seen for that whole time." Nurse Floom speculated to me. "We were better off rid of her. If only she stayed away completely."_

_Queen Swanwhite was murdered on the day that Lady Indina returned. I have no resource from that day but we do know that according to evidence after the event, Lady Indina was seen within the castle walls heading towards the queen and leading the White Witch behind her. An hour after the entrance, Lady Indina was seen fleeing the palace and was never seen again. Many Narnians believe that she felt guilty for her part in the Queen's death and should rightly so. "She might as well have murdered the queen herself! She is a traitor and a murderer and deserves everything bad that's coming to her." Nurse Floom spoke to me tearfully. _

I felt Mr Tumnus' hand on the back of my shoulder blades as he gently rubbed my back. "I know it's a shock milady, but at least you now know the truth." Mr Tumnus spoke solemnly.

After a moment I took a deep breath and nodded turning to Mr Tumnus with a smile plastered on my face. "Thank you Mr Tumnus. I can't think of anything I can do to repay you for this. You've been very kind to do this for me." Mr Tumnus shook his head.

"Think nothing of it milady. I just hope it will help you in the long run." Mr Tumnus squeezed my hand reassuringly and stood up. "Now is there anything I can do for you tonight?" I shook my head and smiled at him. "Well then I shall return to my hammock and get some rest for tomorrow. Goodnight milady." With that said Mr Tumnus bowed and then turned towards the door, shutting it firmly behind him. I stayed sat down quietly on my bed. The silence seemed to make it more prominent now that I was alone.

A small thought in the back of my mind began to wonder what had happened that day. What could have gone through my mother's mind when she decided to betray her friend? I guessed that when Queen Swanwhite had asked her to hide for a month she had actually come to England to have me but how she could spend two decades in England and only a month goes by here? I decided not to let my mind ponder on that conundrum. Instead I stood up and sat at my writing desk.

"Dear Ivy..." I murmured as I began to write on a fresh piece of parchment. I stared at the two words I had written and thought hard about what I wanted to write. Before I had left to come on this voyage, Ivy had made me promise to write as often as I could, describing what was happening over in Calormen. She had replied stating how Lucy was doing and how Oreius Junior was slowly growing into a little terror. All in all we had written about five letters, each of them not really stating any change and in all fairness there hadn't been really any change. Apart from today that is. I picked up my writing quill and began to write again.

_Dear Ivy,_

_Things have decidedly gone downhill. We are sailing on our way back as I am writing this. Susan has decided not to marry the Calormen prince and so we left about three hours ago. I fear there might be more trouble to come. Our departure was quite hasty to tell you the truth but more on that when we get back. I just thought it best to give you fair warning to you and Lucy so that you're not too surprised to see us back so early. _

_I have had another nightmare as well Ivy so that has definitely put another damper on our little voyage. I'd prefer to tell you in person what my nightmare was about and not through this letter because you never know who could intercept this. There was a little mishap with Prince Corin but things are under control now which has taken a lot off our minds for now. I hope you are all well. We should be arriving sometime tomorrow, around midday, depending on how strong the wind is tonight._

_See you soon,_

_Alexandra._

Rolling up the letter and sealing it with a wax print I stood up from my desk, wrapping my dressing gown more tightly around myself before heading out to find a messenger bird. Narnian messenger birds were the best messengers in the land and would guarantee any message that you give them will get to its destination within twelve hours. I made my way towards the bow of the ship where we usually keep all the messenger birds when they weren't being used. The smell of the sea was one of my favourite smells since I had first arrived in Narnia all those years ago. There was a gentle clear breeze that sent shivers up my spine. I wrapped my dressing gown tighter around myself, tying the sash tightly as if it would shield me from the cold. I couldn't see anyone else on the deck as I crept to the bow of the ship where we kept the messenger birds. The birds greeted me with quiet hoots and coos to which I smiled back. They were dumb birds so it made me feel less guilty that they were kept in a coop. This was the only way to keep them from flying off before we needed them. Unlatching the little slatted door I reached inside and grabbed one of the birds, lifting him gently out of the coop.

"Freeing the birds are we?" A voice spoke behind my ear as I jumped and let go of the bird in surprise. The bird hooted in delight and flew off towards the moon before I could catch him. I huffed and turned around to see Edmund looking at me with a half-smile.

"Thanks for that Ed, now I've got to get another one out." I shook my head and turned back to the coop unlatching the door once more.

"Are you sending a letter?" Edmund asked innocently stepping around me and leaning casually against the side of the coop.

"To Ivy if you must know." I nodded. "I'm just letting her know how we're doing and that we're on our way back." I grabbed another bird, this one slightly more feathery than the last. As I lifted the bird out of the coop I was thanked with a harsh peck on my finger. "Ouch! What was that for bird brain?" I demanded the bird raising an eyebrow at him.

"You do realise you're talking to a bird, right?" Edmund chuckled, taking over from me and latching the door himself.

"He understands what I'm talking about." I replied shooting the bird a glare whilst I fumbled with securing my letter into the leather pocket strapped around the bird little body. Hopefully it wouldn't fall out whilst the bird was flying. Turning to the railing I threw the bird into the air in the direction that we were heading. I felt Edmund come to stand beside me at the railing but I still stared out at the water. The cool steady breeze tickled the side of my neck lifting up strands of my hair. It felt almost welcome against my warm skin.

Edmund's fingernails began tapping against the wood of the rail grabbing my attention immediately. I stared down at his fingers and their rhythmic pattern, almost hypnotic in their beats. I shook my head. "Is there something you wanted to talk about Ed?" I asked stiffly, returning my gaze to the water. A huge white orb danced and twinkled back up at me from the water's surface.

A moment later Edmund let out a sigh. "Are we fighting again Alexandra?"

The question caught me off guard. I thought he would have questioned me about our conversation back before we set off, or why I was awake this late in the night. So I thought quietly and continued to stare at the water. "I don't know, maybe." I finally replied with a shrug. I could see vaguely from the reflection in the water that Edmund was frowning.

"Was it something I said?" he asked. I shrugged and listened as he let out another tired sigh. "Come on. Give me something to work with here Alexandra. Did I do something wrong?"

"Yes, no...You might have done, yes." I spoke quietly turning my attention to my hands, laid calmly one on top of the other. Why weren't my hands shaking? I should be a nervous wreck.

Edmund nodded to himself in confirmation. "So I did do something wrong." He turned his head to me and stared silently. "So are you going to act like my best friend and tell me what I've done or just leave me in the dark?" I glanced up at Edmund's face and winced to see a look of annoyance on his face. This was a look I had seen many times before but mostly when we were very young, when we argued almost everyday, when we fought out our problems instead of shutting them up. Edmund raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

"You kissed me." I whispered looking up at his face but not meeting his eyes. "You kissed me in front of everyone. Why would you do that? Do you know how I felt being kissed like that?" I watched as Edmund's face softened and as he bowed his head. "And then you treat it like nothing. I felt so...confused and humiliated after that."

"Why would you be confused?" Edmund frowned. I shook my head suddenly beginning to feel tears welling up in my eyes.

"I'm confused because I don't know where we are at the moment." I turned away, unable to look at him without feeling embarrassed. "I mean, it wasn't long ago that you kissed Zia and now you just kissed me so I..." I sniffled and wiped my cheeks. "By the mane I hate all this emotional stuff, I flipping _hate_ crying."

"Is this what it's all about?" Edmund shook his head and carefully pulled me to his chest. I felt his chin rest on top of my head. "Alexandra I've already told you that Zia was just a flying fancy. It didn't mean anything." I felt him rub my back soothingly.

"I know, I know. Which is why I'm so confused." I mumbled into his shirt. Edmund held me close to him and slowly began to rock me from side to side.

"If it will make it easier for you, I'll stop...kissing you if you want." Edmund murmured in my ear. "I'll stop doing all the other things if it'll make you feel comfortable again."

"No," I spoke staring up at him. Edmund looked at me in surprise. I swallowed uneasily. "I mean I just want it all to go back to when it was simpler between us. The way we used to be."

I heard a chuckle come out from Ed's lips. "Alexandra, things have never been simple with us."

"Oh don't ruin it for me Ed." I gave him a shove in the chest.

I felt his finger reach under my chin and he lifted it up until I was looking at him. Then cautiously he cupped my face and peered into my eyes. I could feel my face warming up. I could hear my heartbeat pounding against my ribcage. I close my eyes in anticipation, waiting for the moment when he would lean towards me and...place his fingers on the corners of my mouth nudging them upwards. "Smile." he whispered gleefully. I opened my eyes and gave him a rueful look before my mouth obeyed his command. Edmund grinned back and pulled me into another hug. I wrapped my arms tightly around his chest and hugged back until he suddenly hissed and pulled away.

"Ed, what's wrong?" I frowned as he eased himself away.

"Oh it's nothing, just a scratch I got from earlier." He waved it away and I shook my head.

"Come on Ed, let me have a look." I ducked beneath his arm and stepped around to see the back of his shoulders. I couldn't really see much in this light but there was a small dark patch on his navy shirt just where I had hugged him. I rested my head against his back and squeezed his sides. "Ed, you really should start telling me if you're hurt you know. What's the point of having a doctor as your best friend if you won't let me help you out once in a while?"

"I didn't want to cause you any more problems."

"Believe me Ed, I have so many problems at the moment another little fixable one like this won't do much." I grabbed his hand and began to lead him back to my cabin. "Come on, I have a spare first aid kit back in my dormitory."

"What other problems do you have at the moment? I said I would help you solve them if you wanted me too." Edmund spoke quietly as we crept back along the ship.

"Thank you for the offer Ed but not tonight. Lets just get you sorted out first and then maybe we'll talk through my problems in the morning." I let Edmund into my dormitory and shut the door quietly behind me. Thankfully my candle had not gone out when I left earlier. It was still flickering dimly on the table, casting enough light for me to see myself around. "Right, shirt off and lie on your front on the bed."

Edmund nodded tiredly and did as he was told. I set myself about gathering all the things I would need; pulling my first aid box from underneath my bed, clean water from the bucket I kept in the corner, clean cloth, stitching needle and thread just in case and some fresh bandages before I knelt beside Ed. His black messy haired head was resting on his arms but he was turned so that he could still see me a little. I set myself cleaning his shoulder wound, which wasn't that big but was deep from what I could tell. I tutted at the sight. "Dear me Ed, it's another stitching job. You're going to end up as a patchwork quilt one of these days."

"Well, maybe not so much if you keep stitching me up. You're pretty good considering you never took embroidery." I rolled my eyes and let out a quiet chuckle as I reached over to the first aid box to pick up a bottle of antiseptic which would help sterilize the wound. Edmund let out a sharp hiss, hunching up his shoulders before slowly relaxing them.

"You know I was never really one for girly things was I?" I smiled as I threaded the needle and then held it over the flame of the candle to help sterilize it. A crude but efficient way to clean objects if nothing else is available. Wouldn't have been my first choice but we're on a ship.

"I'm glad. I mean who else would do such a good job of patching me up." Edmund smiled before hiding his face in the crook of his elbow. "Come on then, get it over with."

"Are you sure there isn't anything I can get you for the pain? Biting block? Alcohol? Extra pillows?" I suggested but he shook his head and clenched the side of my pillow with his fist. "Very well." I didn't warn him when I put the first stitch in but when I did he let out a painful groan. I ignored him until I was finished. "There we go, all done. You can now slowly sit up. Don't want you tearing up my work already."

"I swear you have magic fingers." Edmund groaned as he sat up. "You don't have anything for feeling dizzy do you?"

"Well, I would suggest water but you haven't been to sleep yet so I'll give you one of my sleeping draughts if you want. Might keep the wooziness at bay." I tidied away all my equipment and rummaged in my personal bag for a bottle of potion, pulling out a small bottle with amber coloured liquid in it. "This is my last one so we'll have to share it. You first." I handed him the bottle, watched him uncork it and then tip it back into his mouth. He flinched and nearly gagged but said nothing, handing the bottle back to me. I did the same.

Within minutes Ed was swaying about on my bed. It looked almost comical really. I lunged out and slowly eased him back onto my bed so that he wouldn't hurt himself. I giggled as I leaned over him. "Strong stuff isn't it?"

"You're telling me." He laughed back. I smiled before clumsily clambering over and resting beside him. My eyes felt heavy but my body felt light. I leaned up and blew out the candle. I turned back to Edmund and kissed his cheek. "Goodnight Edmund." And with that I rolled over and turned my back to him feeling ashamed of myself.

_This has to stop Alexandra, _I told myself harshly as memories of how warm his cheek felt against my lips floated in my mind. _Either tell him or leave him. _


	33. Anvard in Trouble

_Hello!_

_Long time no read. Sorry it's been so long, my life has been a little hectic lately and I wanted to get this chapter right because so much goes on in it. __**14**__ pages worth of plot is right here people! It's been driving me up the wall, trust me. Please keep reviewing. Every single one of your reviews helps me to get better in writing, which in turn helps this plot which you guys will read. Talk about full circle. _

_I am going to kill off a character in the next chapter! Or maybe more! The sadistic side of my imagination has finally been unleashed and will wreak havoc with everything. Expect blood, dead bodies, dramatic death scenes and a PLOT TWIST!_

_And I have a preview for you! The title of the next chapter is __**The End is in sight for me**__ and here is the preview:_

"**And you think I won't? Surely you must know I..." He trailed off and turned away from me, his body tense and slightly trembling.**

"**Surely I must know what?" I whispered. **

"**It doesn't matter. Forget I said anything."**

"**Surely I must know what Edmund?" I raised my voice. **

"**Just forget it Alexandra." **

"**Damn it Ed, just tell me already." I demanded.**

**His eyes were closed and his hands were shaking. A minute passed in silence before he ran his hands through his hair and groaned. "Oh to hell with it." **

_And I'm going to stop it right there! Mwa ha ha! Review if you want to find out what happens. Now I won't hold you any longer. Enjoy!_

**_11/07/13 - Hang in there guys I am just halfway there. I have been writing and editing an re-editing like mad to get this right for you. Please don't give up on me! _**

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Anvard in Trouble**

Edmund rolled on to his front in his sleep, a peaceful look painted on his face just like when he was a child. Before he betrayed us to the White Witch, before the war began, before any of this had happened. I remember when we used to sleep in the same bed when I stayed over at the Pevensies. I could remember how everyone looked at us with frowns as we came down to breakfast together, each of them knowing exactly where I slept the night before.

I watched Edmund from my desk, my eyebrows creasing in thought as my fingers fiddled with my necklace. My hair was still in disarray but I couldn't bring myself to fix it. My mind was too busy focused on last night to even ponder on the simple things. I closed my eyes and I was back at messenger keep, my arms wrapped around Edmund's waist, his heart beating beneath my ear, listening to him talk but not taking anything in. I opened my eyes and stared at Edmund. I had almost told him that I... I sighed inwardly. I couldn't even say it to myself, so how on earth could I ever say it to Ed?

A small frown appeared on Edmund's face as he rolled on to his side, his lean sloping back turning to face me. I spied the newest scar on his shoulder, the one I stitched last night before we went to sleep. I could remember his warm skin underneath my fingertips, the way his back tensed when I slipped the needle in to his skin. I shook my head and chided myself. This was exactly why I should stop this. I couldn't have romantic relations with my patients. It was unprofessional. It was a breach of trust. How could I forget the basic, most important rule that I was even told before I started my training?

A quiet knock sounded on the door and I leapt up from my chair, rushing over to the door before it opened. I grabbed the doorknob and slowly turned it, peeking through the door. Susan stood on the other side looking surprised, dressed in the clothes she had worn yesterday. "Alexandra, can you let me in? I've got to get changed for today." She asked stepping forward, pushing the door against me.

"No wait!" I hissed glancing over my shoulder at Edmund who was still thankfully fast asleep in my bed.

"What's going on Alexandra? Why can't I come in and change?" Susan frowned and pushed against the door again.

"Just wait a minute." I eased the door open just enough for me to slip through and shut the door firmly behind me. Susan huffed and stared at me, placing one hand on her waist.

"What are you hiding in there that I can't see?" She demanded. I bit my lip and held firmly on to the door knob.

"Please, let me explain before you jump to conclusions." I said slowly, holding up a hand to try to keep her away from the door. Susan frowned at me. In a flash she had her hand tightly on my own hand holding the doorknob, twisting it harshly and pushed the door open. "Susan, no!"

It was no use. Her jaw dropped and I knew her gaze had fallen on Edmund in my bed, the blankets only half covering his waist and back. Edmund's shoulders would be bare and on show to the small audience of Susan and I. I squeezed myself between Susan and the door, pushing her away and shutting the door once more.

"Why is my little brother _in your bed half-naked_?" Susan gasped.

"Shh! Announce it to the whole ship, why don't you?" I glanced around us to find there was no one around for now. "And it's not what you think anyway."

"Well explain then because from what I've seen it's exactly what I'm thinking." Susan crossed her arms in front of her and narrowed her gaze at me. "He may be a pain in the backside at times but he's still my little brother and I'm not just going to stand aside and watch him get hurt again."

"He's twenty years old Su, he can make his own decisions, but that's beside the point." I stared at her astonished. "I don't ever want to hurt Edmund. What do you take me for? And nothing happened, Su. Edmund had an injury on his shoulder so I stitched it up for him and let him sleep on my bed for the night. That's all."

"So where did you sleep last night then?"

"Oh come off it Susan!" I huffed and stormed away from her, hurt bubbling underneath my skin. I wrapped my dressing gown more tightly around myself. "Don't you think I'd have more respect for myself _and _for Edmund not to degrade myself to that? I thought you had a higher regard for me than that."

"Alexandra, I didn't mean it like that. Look will you just stop for a moment and face me." I felt Susan grab my arm as she pulled me around to face her. I stopped and stared at her. "Do you know how serious this is? What if any of the court had found out about this? What if Peter heard about this?"

"What does it matter? Nothing happened last night Su, so can you drop it now?" I sighed exasperated, rolling my eyes at her. Susan suddenly grabbed my shoulders and shook me, her eyes wide with serious concern.

"Listen to me Alexandra. You need to stop messing around with Edmund before you hurt him for good." Susan glared at me. I met her gaze and glared back angrily, shoving her hands off my shoulders.

"How dare you even think that I'm messing around with Edmund?" I hissed at her. "You know how much I care for Ed. I am not going to hurt him!"

Just as Susan was about to retort an answer, we heard heavy footsteps stomping wearily down the staircase at the end of the corridor as a few of the crew from the deck appeared in the corridor looking like mindless exhausted drones as they searched for their hammocks. Susan fell silent and nodded politely to them as they passed us, staying quiet until they were out of sight. Susan turned back to me and sighed tiredly. "Alexandra, I know you don't want to hurt him, I just don't think you realise what you're doing half the time."

"What are you talking about?" I demanded stiffly, the little bubble of anger inside me still simmering away like a cauldron above an open fireplace. The expression on Susan's face changed from exasperation to pity. I felt uncomfortable with that look. It always felt like she knew something I didn't and it left me feeling anxious.

"Whenever Ed's away from you, you're the only thing he wants to talk about." Susan shook her head.

"That's ridiculous Su. He's the most level-headed person I know. Well, apart from you." Susan shook her head again, her eyes still filled with pity.

"It's true Alexandra. It's like when you're around him he's normal and happy but then when he's with us...he's not, not completely anyway. Then when you come up in a conversation or whenever you appear, he perks up and pays even more attention than he was before. There's not one minute when he's not looking at you or talking about how worried he is about..." Susan glanced around us and lowered her voice, "Well, about your _nightmares_. He has feelings for you."

I shook my head in denial, feeling my heart beating erratically in my chest like a wild animal. "It can't be, that's rubbish. I would have known if he looked at me all the time."

"Would you really notice?"

"Yes! I've never seen him look -" I faltered suddenly as I remembered the day I asked him to help my with my dress, the way he looked embarrassed when I caught him staring at me in the mirror. "No, I would know. He tells me everything."

"So you know his scar still hurts him from time to time?" Susan raised her eyebrow.

"_What?_" I knew exactly which scar she meant. We all did. It was the Taboo subject, just like my dreams and Ed's betrayal were not properly talked about. "How long ago did this start happening?"

"How should I know? I can't read his mind, heaven forbid what he's thinking of most days although I can have a fair guess what." Susan gave me a shrewd look. "Look, all I'm asking is for you to be careful with what you do and say around Edmund. If you don't return his feelings -"

"If he has any," I interjected.

"Then don't lead him on." Susan finished rubbing her eyes wearily. I had only noticed now how red and puffy they were. "Right, I think I shall see you at breakfast. Remember what I said." Susan turned and headed towards our cabin dormitory, disappearing into the room and exiting five minutes later dressed in a deep blue and grey dress. As she passed me she didn't lift her gaze from the floor until she ascended the staircase up to the deck. I let out a breath and walked slowly back to my cabin.

When I pushed the door open I found Edmund sitting up in my bed rubbing his eyes groggily. My heart clenched almost painfully as my gaze sought him out in the room. I scolded myself and hurried over to my wardrobe.

"Morning, what time is it?" Edmund yawned from behind me.

"I think it's around seven. I can't always tell at sea." I shrugged nonchalantly. I heard him curse under his breath as he hurriedly scrambled from my bed. "Late for somewhere you need to be?" I turned around to see him searching everywhere for his bloodied shirt from last night.

"I am supposed to see the captain first thing this morning. Oh where is my shirt?" Edmund dropped to the floor and looked under my bed, shaking his head when he couldn't see anything.

"Whoa Ed, be careful of the stitches." I stepped over and helped him get up slowly. When Ed straightened up his eyes met mine. My heart pounded in my chest. When I looked in his eyes I was reminded of how dark his eyes were and how beautiful I thought they were. More than anything I wanted to just stare into them forever. _Tell him, tell him, tell him_ my grandmother's voice nagged at me. I opened my mouth to tell him, suddenly feeling bold when he looked behind me.

"Oh there it is." Edmund smiled as he gently pulled himself out of hold and brushed gently past me, picking up his shirt off of my desk. I closed my eyes forcing my emotions to shun the disappointed feeling that was growing inside me. I crossed my arms in front of me and opened up my wardrobe once again focusing on my morning task of getting dressed. I spotted a spare shirt at the bottom of my wardrobe. I wondered where the shirt had come from but I shrugged and picked it up. It smelled clean so I tossed it at Ed. It hit him in the side of his face.

"Put that on instead. You can't wear the clothes you wore last night. People will think you spent the night someplace other than your own cabin."

"But I did spend the night someplace other than my cabin." Edmund shot me a grin. I pursed my lips.

"Not funny Ed. What if anyone at home had heard about this?" I gestured in no where in particular. Mostly because I was a little confused about what this was. Edmund shook his head with a small chuckle, slipping the shirt over his head.

"You've changed your tune. The other night you wanted to share a bed with me." Edmund replied not unkindly.

"I know. I've just been thinking over some things and I thought maybe it's best to stop some of the things before they get out of hand." I shrugged, pulling out a random dress and headed over to change behind a screen out of Edmund's view.

"Is this all because of our conversation last night?"

"No," I lied slipping out of my dress and flung it over the top of the screen, hoping that Ed wasn't looking. "I've been thinking about this for a while."

"Well, I already said if you felt uncomfortable with anything then I'd stop it." I stepped into my dress and pulled it up, slipping my arms into the sleeves as I went.

"But surely you think that our behaviour has been a bit...inappropriate I suppose. And you're a King which, you know, makes it ten times worse if you think about it. It's not really what a country expects from one of their kings." I said reasonably, fastening up my dress as high as I could get it without needing help and stepped out from behind the screen turning my back to Ed. "Tie me up would you?" I pulled my hair out-of-the-way and waited for him to finish off. I felt his fingers gently pinch the strings in the corset bodice and slowly started to tighten them up.

"Depends on how you feel about it really." I heard Edmund reply. I frowned.

"Well, how _do_ you feel about it? You haven't been feeling uncomfortable around me have you?" I glanced over my shoulder at him.

"Do I look uncomfortable now?" His fingers paused and he allowed me to turn around slightly, his fingers staying put on my back where he hadn't finished tying the strings. The expression on his face was calm and content, as if he wasn't tying my dress up at all but rather he was in the middle of a court case.

"No, not really." I reluctantly admitted.

"No," he agreed turning back to tying off my dress. "So why are you so worried about how I would feel? I don't mind what we're doing. I mean, we've done it for a while haven't we?"

"Years," I nodded, suddenly seeing his point of view. We have been doing this for years...whatever it is we're doing. It just felt natural really. Like it was meant to be... "But don't you think other people would think it strange? I know the others often think we're courting most of the time." A small ridiculous chuckle escaped my lips.

"Are we?" Edmund's fingers stopped and moved away from my back. Instead they rested on my arm and I felt a warm tingle prickling under the surface of my skin.

I turned to him with a half-smile. "Are we what?"

"Are we courting?" Edmund asked confusedly. I stared at him in surprise and confusion. As I was about to answer, the door suddenly flew open and Corin appeared, red-cheeked and scruffily dressed in a simple tunic and trousers.

"Lady Alexandra, Queen Susan is waiting for you at the breakfast -" When Corin saw Edmund and me, he halted in the doorway, eyes growing wide in surprise. "Oh sorry, I didn't know you had company. When did you get in here? No wait, I don't want to know, sorry, I-I've got to go." As Corin turned to exit the room, his foot collided with the edge of the door frame and he let out a curse as he limped the rest of the way. The door followed him and closed shut.

"Well, that was weird." Edmund commented. I turned to check myself in the mirror on the door of my wardrobe and gasped in embarrassment.

"Oh of course!" I felt my cheeks warm as I touched the bird's nest on top of my head. I glanced at Edmund's hair to see it in the same state as mine. I bowed my head trying to hide my face.

"What's wrong?" Edmund chuckled in bemusement.

"He thinks we...you know..._spent the night together._" I whispered as I picked up my brush from the table beside my bed and hurriedly dragged it through my hair, wincing when it wrenched through a knot. Edmund stared at me blankly. I let out a sigh in exasperation. "I meant as a _couple._"

It took a moment for the penny to drop before the realisation dawned on his face. "Oh, he'll get over it."

I felt my jaw drop in disbelief before I shook my head. "Let's just get ready and then go to breakfast. Don't you need to see the captain?" Edmund cursed and hurriedly dragged his fingers through his hair. As I put my brush on my table, I felt Edmund touch my arm and placed a small peck on my cheek before we both froze, staring at each other in shock.

"Er..." Edmund said slowly, a flush growing in his cheeks as he slowly retracted his hand. I blinked and shook my head.

"Nevermind, just go." I spoke, nudging him out of the door. My back collapsed against the door when he disappeared and I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding, closing my eyes in bliss. I didn't even realise a smile had appeared on my face until it my cheeks began to ache.

_Tell him..._ my grandmother's voice whispered to me in the back of my mind. _Tell him how you feel..._

I shook my head to rid myself of the noise and took a moment to compose myself, checking my reflection one last time in the mirror before heading to breakfast. When I arrived in the breakfast cabin, the only people sitting at the table were Corin and Susan. Susan caught my gaze when I entered the dining cabin. I acted like the look she was giving me didn't bother me at all despite the growing feeling inside telling me that she was scrutinising me, looking for any signs that I had messed with Edmund's head.

I sat down next to Corin opposite Susan and picked up a piece of toast, spreading some raspberry jam across the top and then took a bite.

"So Corin," Susan addressed with an air of innocence. "did you have a good night's sleep last night?"

"Quite pleasant really considering I was sleeping in the crews' quarters. Did you know they actually have quite comfy hammocks?" Corin replied conversationally. Corin seemed to be making a show of not knowing I was here. I cringed inside sympathising how embarrassing it would be for him. It was just as embarrassing for Ed and I...well mostly me.

"Do they? Well that's interesting to know." Susan half smiled taking a small demure bite of her breakfast. I wondered how she could be so lady-like and yet so obviously cunning. I tore a bite out of my toast as Susan turned her gaze on me. "What about you Alexandra? Did you have a nice sleep?"

I knew exactly what she was doing. She wanted me to be embarrassed, to know exactly how inappropriate my behaviour was. I shrugged my shoulders and took another bite out of my toast, the taste somehow tasting rotten on my tongue. The door behind me opened as Sir Peridan helped Sir Thornbut hobble in. Susan stood up and hurried around to help Sir Thornbut into his seat. "Good morning Sir Thornbut. How are you feeling this morning?" She asked pushing the back of his seat closer to the table.

"Much better your majesty, although I honestly don't mind having breakfast with the rest of the crew." The dwarf spoke with a small tone of embarrassment in his voice. "Just because my leg is a bit sore doesn't mean I should be pitied on."

"No one has spoken of pity, Sir Thornbut. This is merely a thank you for your courage last night. Sir Peridan, why don't you join us also?" Susan smiled graciously, gesturing to the empty seat next to Corin at the table. Sir Peridan shook his head and stood to attention.

"I'm afraid I must decline your offer your majesty, I must help some of the crew with the sails. Thank you all the same." Sir Peridan bowed and with a nod from Susan, left the room.

Prince Corin stared over at Sir Thornbut, a tight smile on his lips and a crease on his brow. The dwarf shifted in his seat and cleared his throat. "Is there something you wish to say, your highness?" Corin shook his head and hurriedly bit into a sausage. "Alright then, I'm starving." Sir Thornbut shrugged and began to dig in.

The rest of breakfast passed with an uncomfortable silence. I did not want to stay here for long so I hurriedly finished my breakfast and left. For the rest of the morning, I tried to avoid everyone. I just wanted to work on my own for once, get some things straight in my head. I couldn't stop thinking about what Susan had said this morning. Every word of it sounded ridiculous. The idea that Edmund had feelings for me when he's never said anything to me about it was completely preposterous.

_But what if she's right..._ My grandmother's voice whispered to me. I was reminded of the times I caught Edmund staring at me in the mirror and when he complimented me out of the blue but I didn't want to believe it. He would have told me, I'm certain of it. _There are things you don't talk to him about. _

I shook my head and continued on with my work. I had decided to check on some of the crew that were injured last night when we escaped from Calormen, when I realised that I had run out of some of my supplies. Throughout my training I had gathered a number of recipes for medicines and salves that would get rid of many maladies, like cuts, burns, bruises and so on. As of yet I still have found anything to cure all ills like Lucy's fire flower juice but I'm getting close. I've had to guess what the other ingredients in the juice are as Peter didn't want to risk losing a drop so that I could examine it. So I'm at a bit of a dead end.

When I had gathered all of my necessary supplies I headed below-decks back towards the infirmary. I had so many supplies with me from bandages to salves to pain relief that my arms were beginning to ache under the weight of it all. I turned a corner peering over the bundle in my arms to try and spot the steps below me when suddenly I felt a blow to the back and I tumbled down the stairs, letting out a scream as I went. My head hit the floor with a thud and I groaned.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry Milady!" Corin exclaimed rushing down the stairs in a loud tumult of stomping feet. The front of my dress felt sticky and warm as Corin helped me slowly sit up, a crushed bottle filled with a foul smelling paste smeared all over the floor beneath me. _Just great, I so wanted to be covered in anti-fungal paste today, _I thought bitterly.

"Next time Corin, I think it best to slow down and watch where your highness is putting his feet." I spoke with a tight smile as I began to gather up the now meagre supplies I had before continuing on my way to the infirmary. With a grimace, Corin decided to help. There wasn't much I could do to stop him but I wasn't complaining. "What were you doing anyway?"

"I...um, I was just hiding." Corin muttered sheepishly. I frowned.

"Hiding from whom?" I asked halting to a stop. When Corin remained quiet I turned to him. "Corin, who were you hiding from?"

"...Queen Susan." I raised my eyebrow and waited for him to continue. A light pink flush crept up his cheeks. "Queen Susan asked me to get you this morning...but I think she already knew you weren't alone."

I sighed. _Of course she knew._ "Corin, what you saw earlier, I can explain..."

"What happened this morning? I didn't see anything between you and King Edmund. So there's nothing to explain is there?" Corin flustered, his eyes darting any which way but at me. I couldn't stop the smile on my face.

"No, of course there isn't." I nodded. "Just clarifying a point..."

"No point seen, so nothing to clarify I think." Corin interrupted. "Where are these going may I ask? I think there are some desperate patients in need of all these bottles and bandages and...What is that?" Corin nodded towards a small yellowy/brown bottle on top of his bundle. I peered at the bottle and smirked.

"That's a sample bottle. I use it to take samples of infections in wounds and other nasty -"

"I think I'm going to be sick."

"Come on then before you throw up your breakfast." I grinned, trying not to burst out laughing.

The infirmary reeked with the stench of illness, infection, sweat, blood and vomit, a foul smell so powerful that both Corin and I nearly gagged. But with a few open windows I got rid of most of the smell and got used to the rest, deciding it was best to send Corin up on deck instead of keeping him cooped down here. By the time an hour had passed I couldn't smell anything out of the ordinary. Sick patients were lying or sitting or leaning against anything solid everywhere I looked. There were only a few medics around but there was not enough. It was times like this where I wished Ivy could have come along.

"Ow! That hurt!" barked a very unhappy sailor as I rubbed on some salve onto a deep swollen cut on his lower back. Every time he moved my hand pressed harder into the cut, causing more pain for the sailor.

"Well I'm sorry Thalinor, but it's a bit difficult to apply this properly when you keep squirming. Now hold still or I will have to strap you to the table to keep you still." I replied through gritted teeth. I scooped more salve out of the small tub I had and pressed it onto the cut. A torrent wave of curses flew out of the sailor's mouth and I blushed at some of them.

"Thalinor! Is that language necessary in front of a Lady?" A voice barked from the doorway. I jumped and turned to see Edmund frowning at the sailor.

Thalinor whimpered from the table. "I'm sorry your majesty but it hurts, Sire."

"We are all fully aware that you are in pain Thalinor, but please refrain from cursing." Edmund said reasonably with a nod. "Now I think you should apologise to Lady Alexandra and let her get on with her work."

"That's not necessary Edm – I mean Sire," I shook my head in protest catching myself before I said anything further. All those years of etiquette lessons with Susan and Lucy keep flying out of my head when I'm around Edmund. That's probably why our relationship is so confusing. "May I ask of some assistance, Sire? Thalinor here is quite the fidget."

"Certainly," Ed nodded with a half smile, stepping around the table and holding onto Thalinor's shoulders, fixing him still on the table.

"Alright Thalinor, let's try this one more time. If you can stay still I can promise that this will all be over in a jiffy." I waited until Thalinor nodded and then swiped the salve on his back. He writhed and groaned in pain, Edmund struggling to keep him on the table. Within minutes I was done. "I'm finished. That wasn't so bad now was it? Now sit up so I can put a bandage on it."

Thalinor grumbled but did as he was told, muttering under his breath as he walked out of the room. I shook my head and chuckled under my breath as I picked up some more bandages before moving onto another patient. I looked up at Edmund and paused. He was staring at me with a smile, his dark chocolate brown eyes sparkling with mischief. "Are you alright, Sire?"

"Yes very much," Edmund nodded stepping around the table between us to stand next to me. "I was just wondering if you could have a look at my shoulder again. I moved a bit too quickly earlier and I felt a twinge."

I swallowed. "Um, right of course I will but could it possibly wait for a minute? I have to tend to other important patients first."

Edmund nodded seriously. "Of course, you go ahead. I'll just wait here." Ed hopped up on to the table and sat there patiently. Stunned, I stared at him in thought trying to figure out what he was up to. "Don't you have patients to see?"

I jumped and nodded, hurrying on to tend to a faun who had a broken leg and was bleeding profusely. As I worked I couldn't stop noticing Ed staring at me as I worked. I felt uncomfortable. Not so much with the fact that he was staring but it added evidence to what Susan said this morning. I didn't want to believe it.

As midday approached we received news that we would be arriving back at Cair Paravel within the hour. I couldn't wait for everything to return to normal. It wasn't until now that I realised that I was completely exhausted. The first thing I think I am going to do when I get back is have a nice hot bath and then maybe have a nap. Or maybe I would pay Ivy and Falstaff a visit and give Oreius Junior a cuddle.

"There we go. Just drink lots of water, have lots of rest and you'll get over the seasickness soon enough." I smiled. The talking otter grimaced back at me and mumbled a "Thank you physician." before running off to throw up once more. I leaned against the side of a work table in exhaustion, letting out a small yawn and closing my eyes when a cough sounded to my left. I inched open my eyes and spotted Edmund still sitting patiently on the table with an empathetic look on his face. "Seriously, not even five minutes rest?" I despaired.

Ed chuckled as he slipped off the table and took my hand. Within seconds he had pulled me forward and then slipped around behind me so that he had separated me from the table before wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder. "You work too hard." I leaned back against him tiredly, wishing for my nap now.

"If I didn't work hard then I'd feel useless." I replied simply. I felt Ed turn his head towards me, his rough cheek brushing lightly against my jaw.

"I admire you, you know. All morning I've watched you work and you didn't stop until everyone else was okay." He whispered in my ear and I felt his arms tighten around me in comfort. "I told a bit of a fib earlier. I didn't hurt my shoulder. I just told the Captain that so that I could come down here and see you."

"Tut tut Ed. What are we going to do with you?" I smiled mischievously. I felt him rumble with laughter.

"No seriously now. Are you alright? You didn't get any nightmares last night so -"

I pulled myself out of Ed's arms and faced him. "Can we keep last night quiet please? I don't want anyone else finding out. It's bad enough that Susan found out this morning." He fell silent and nodded. There was a knock from the entrance and Corin coughed.

"Um, we've arrived at Cair Paravel. It's probably best if you come up. Queen Susan is expecting you both." Corin announced awkwardly, looking down at his feet. He didn't stay long to find out our answer.

"Well, you heard him. Let's go." I sighed. Would I ever get five minutes rest?

* * *

"Ivy!" I cried happily as I pulled her into a fierce hug. We had arrived at Cair Paravel's harbour not two minutes before meeting Lucy, Ivy and many of the guard to greet us back and help unload the ship. "Oh Ivy, it's so good to see you. How have you been?"

"Very good, milady. Falstaff has looked after us and Queen Lucy has coped as best she can. She has such a spirited soul it was hard to stop her from boarding a ship and coming out to join you all." Ivy chuckled.

"Heaven forbid she ever did that." I shuddered remembering the brothel in the centre of the city. "No it's better she stayed here. So how have you been coping with little Oreius?" I grinned.

She puffed out her cheeks and nearly let out a yawn. "I tell you what, having a little boy isn't half as tiring as I anticipated. He's been keeping me up almost every night. I'm so tired. And of course Falstaff hasn't got a clue. Centaur foals are usually raised by their mothers remember. He's good with running activities with him though, telling him tales and playing games."

"Don't worry, he'll get the hang of it." I said confidently. Ivy nodded.

"I know. Now tell me about your journey. I got your letter and I would be lying if I didn't admit to being a little worried." Ivy frowned as she fixed me with a concerned gaze. I sighed and told her everything, from the dreadful arrival to the horrid ball and finally to our desperate getaway. By the end of it, Ivy puffed out her cheeks once more and shook her head. "I don't know what to say except that I'm happy you're safe."

"For now I think." I shuddered. Ivy narrowed her gaze and a crease appeared on her brow.

"What is it, milady? What have you seen in your dreams?" Ivy whispered to me. I glanced warily at the others. Edmund was talking animatedly to Falstaff whilst Susan was in the middle of an embrace with Lucy, who was demanding to know every detail of Susan's adventure. I couldn't see Corin amongst the rest of our party but Sir Peridan and Mr Tumnus were busy supervising the rest of the crew with unloading the ship. I turned back to Ivy and bit my lip.

"It doesn't matter. It probably won't happen." Ivy gave me a stern look.

"Milady, what did you see? It is important that you tell us."

"Why? They're just dreams, aren't they? They're just figments of my imagination." I shook my head defiantly. When Ivy tried to speak again I interrupted her. "I don't want to hear any more about it. I'm tired and I want a bath, may we go inside?" Ivy sighed reluctantly and nodded, taking hold of my elbow and leading me towards the palace.

"What's that coming towards us?" Lucy called out suddenly just as Ivy and I reached the entrance. I turned my gaze to where Lucy was pointing. A blurry silhouette was advancing towards us at a very quick pace.

"It looks like a messenger, your majesty." Sallowpad confirmed as the silhouette grew larger, elongating until we could see the tip of a flagstaff. Corin appeared suddenly beside Lucy and gasped.

"That's our Coat of Arms! That's Archenland's flag. I'd recognise it anywhere." Corin's brow began to crease. "What could a messenger be coming here this early for? Father's not expecting me back until tomorrow."

"You're Majesties! You're Majesties!" The messenger called frantically as he drew up to us and clumsily dismounted from his horse, his leg getting caught and forcing him to fall beside the dumb beast. The horse snorted in disdain and kicked up some dust with his front hoof. Once the messenger managed to detach his leg from the saddle of the horse, he hurried forward and bowed to us. "You're majesties...I have an urgent message from King Lune." He gasped as he handed a scroll, sealed with a wax stamp, to Edmund.

Susan and Lucy thanked the messenger as Edmund opened the letter, frowning at the contents and what was written there. Corin stared at Edmund in worry his hands fidgeting in front of him. "Well, what does it say?"

Edmund closed his eyes and passed the letter to Susan and Lucy, turning his gaze to Corin. "Looks like you're going home today instead. You're father has just received word that Calormen's army is advancing on Archenland as we speak. It seems the Tisroc and his son wish to wreak war on us all. We must ready ourselves to ride as soon as possible. Falstaff, alert the generals and tell them to be ready within the hour." Falstaff nodded and quickly rode off calling to various Narnians as he went.

I felt the blood drain from my face as I remembered my dream from last night. The images of being in the middle of a bloody battle, dying bodies everywhere, the archer, the arrow, Edmund...

"Milady..?" Ivy whispered to my left but I couldn't rid the images of the dream. I couldn't stop staring in horror as the arrow flew through the air and striking Edmund's chest over and over and over. "Milady, I think you should sit down."

I barely felt Ivy lead me to a stone bench and sit me down but when her worried face appeared in my sight I felt a nauseous feeling starting to creep its way up to my throat. "No..." I moaned and shook my head. "No, it can't come true. It can't." I shook my head and closed my eyes hoping that I could just shake it out of my mind.

"What can't come true, Milady?" Ivy asked concerned as she held me tightly. I pulled away from her, gripping my Sais as tightly as I could and tried to steady myself. I looked up at Ivy, a lifelong friend from the moment we first met, and shook my head.

"I'm sorry Ivy. I've got to go with them." I said pulling her into one last hug.

"But what can't come true? What aren't you telling me?" Ivy puzzled in confusion staring at me as if I'd grown an extra head. I pressed a peck on her cheek and walked away feeling a lump growing in my throat. "Where are you going?"

I didn't turn back, knowing that if I did I'd probably tell her my dream. I knew that if I told her about my dream she'd insist on me staying or even worse, she'd come along. I couldn't let that happen now, not when she has little Oreius to look after. I knew that if I told her about my dream, I'd tell her my crazy, stupid, idiotic plan. _It can't come true, I won't let it happen._ I thought fiercely as I tied my hair up into a tight bun. I sprinted my way up to the palace and then up to my chambers, the adrenaline pumping through my veins not even leaving me breathless. I pushed open the door to my chambers and made a beeline for the trunk at the end of my bed. I creaked open the trunk and let out a breath. Lying folded up at the bottom of the trunk was a deep burgundy dress made of velvet with a leather bodice. I remember exactly when I wore this. I wore this when we were fighting the White Witch.

I lifted it out of the trunk. It was heavier than I remember but that didn't matter to me. It would do its job. Because if I was correct about my dreams and that my dreams were coming true, then there was no other way. I am not going to see him dying again. I am going to do it.

I am going to change the future.


	34. The end is in sight for me

_Hello everybody!_

_I am so, so, so incredibly sorry that this is so late. A whole load of rubbish has been going on lately and I honestly don't deserve your support guys. I appreciate it so much. So new things that have happened that might explain the forced waiting...I have become an Auntie to an adorably chubby little baby boy called Owen that my little sister had three months ago, which has been hectic, I have come to the conclusion that I have to move out of my mum's house through no fault of my own and I have just finished school. Forever. Which is a little daunting as I've been looking for jobs all over the place, and where I live it's just about as difficult as trying to get published with a barely started novel. _

_But enough of my excuses. I have tried incredibly hard to get this chapter right because this is where it starts to get a little messed up. Philosophically, I mean. Plus Edmund doesn't make things any better..._

_I have started trying to build up a soundtrack for this story and I would really appreciated it if you could perhaps suggest some songs that would fit different characters and the relationship between Alexandra and Edmund. The soundtrack for this chapter is __**Breath of life by Florence and the Machine**__ because I really think this chapter needed an anthem. You should check this song out it's really awesome. Plus the video is epic because it has clips from the Snow White and the Huntsman movie in it. _

_I thank all those who have reviewed and not given up on me. I love you all. Thank you all so much for reading this story and I will let you know when I start thinking of a sequel. _

_Enjoy!_

_PS. I am sorry in advance if Alexandra does sound like a Mary Sue. I tried to keep it out but I'm not sure I succeeded. _

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**The End is in Sight for me**

Shouldering my medicine bag and tying my Sais around my waist I strode determinedly down the front steps of the palace and made my way to the entrance gates where Edmund had instructed all the able soldiers to meet. When I arrived I spotted Susan, Lucy and Ivy gathered together talking and saying goodbye to loved ones who were going off to fight. Ivy turned around and her eyes widened at the sight of me. "Milady, you cannot be serious! You've only just got back." She moaned as she shook her head. She turned to Susan and Lucy with worry. "Your majesties please make her see reason. Please order her to stay here."

I pursed my lips in annoyance. "Ivy, please just stop. I'm going to help them and there is nothing you can do to stop me." I strode past her, adjusting my wrist guards as I went.

"What seems to be the problem Ivy?" Lucy asked in confusion, looking between the both of us in concern. Ivy and I never argued so she must have realised that something serious was happening.

"Lady Alexandra seems to have a plan in mind which doesn't sit well with me." Ivy huffed. "She has had many nightmares over the voyage and now she's determined to leave with the army! It's insane!"

I gasped, staring at Ivy in shock. Before I could say anything, Lucy stepped in between us and held up her hands in a placating gesture. "Alright now, calm down. Alexandra what is Ivy going on about? What were the nightmares about?" I looked around us only to find that everyone else was busy minding their own business, gathering supplies for the journey. I sighed and pulled them aside to a quiet alcove where I was sure no one would overhear us.

"I saw the Narnians defending Anvard against Calormen. It was a bloodbath; lives will be lost Ivy I have to go." I tried to get her to see that I would be needed there. A crease appeared on Ivy's brow before she stood up to her full height and nodded.

"Well I'll come with you and help." I gasped in horror.

"You will do no such thing." Susan commanded, crossing her arms in front of her chest and looking Ivy straight in the eye. "You have your child to look after now. I forbid you to leave that poor baby here alone without his mother." Ivy sighed.

"What about Lady Alexandra? You haven't completed your training yet." I rolled my eyes. I've trained in medicine for over five years. I think I know at least a bit about first aid."

"I'll be fine. I know how to look after myself. It's not as if I haven't been in a battle before." I took Ivy's hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "I'll be careful, you know I will."

"And I'll make sure she does." Lucy added from behind me. I blinked and stared at her in surprise. I had only just noticed that she was dressed in protective leather gear. I shook my head and stared back at Ivy incredulously.

"And you're telling me off for going? Did I miss the part where Lucy gets chastised like a pup?" I scoffed. Susan and Lucy rolled their eyes as Ivy's skin flushed a bright red, reaching up to the roots of her hair. I had only seen this happen once before and back then Falstaff was around to flirt with her, but now I was a little worried.

"Lucy is a queen. I can't order a queen to stay here. It's not my place. However, you are my friend." I felt myself soften a little as Ivy's skin slowly returned to its normal shade of pale green. "Please reconsider and stay here where it's safe and where you can rest."

I sighed and pulled Ivy into a tight hug, squeezing her comfortingly. "Ivy," I mumbled against her shoulder. "I promise I'll come back safe and sound. But I'm not going to change my mind. I've got to go." I pulled away and stared her in the eye. "You would do the same in my position." I could see tears welling up in Ivy's eyes and she tried to conspicuously wipe them away. Over her shoulder I spotted Corin mounting a small horse, readying himself to go and I knew that it was time to leave. "I'll see you soon Ivy."

I hurried after Corin and the others without looking back, knowing I'd probably do something I'll regret later. I wanted to walk, feeling that if I kept moving it would help me relax a little. The army charged out of the palace gates throughout the lower city and headed straight for the north gates, collecting more willing Narnians as we went. It was hard not to go up to each of them, shake them and yell "Turn away whilst you still have a chance!" but I knew exactly in my mind how that would look. Edmund and Lucy would more likely send me back to the Cair and then Edmund would die. I couldn't let that happen.

Falstaff was walking on his own up ahead and I found myself catching up to him. It seemed so long ago since I'd last seen him. Ever since Oreius junior was born, both Falstaff and Ivy have been increasingly busy. It seemed such a shame that the only time I could have a chat with him and we're on our way to battle. Falstaff looked up and smiled tiredly at me. "Afternoon Milady," he greeted with a nod of his head.

"Afternoon Falstaff, how have you been?" I asked with a small smile.

"Oh, as good as you can be I suppose. This wasn't exactly the best news I've received all day. I was going to spend some time with little Oreius this afternoon before we received word from Archenland. Tis' a shame, but what can you do?" Falstaff replied with a shrug. I copied his shrug and we strode on in a companionable silence. I stared round at all of the other recruits who had come along, all of them well seasoned soldiers. A lump grew in my chest. Some of these people would be dead, leaving their loved ones at home as they unknowingly went to their deaths and I felt so guilty.

_What is going on with you? That Calormen sun has addled your brain Alexandra. You're panicking over nothing, _my grandmother chided at me. She was always the voice of reason in my life. It was funny how I only ever listened when she was telling me off for swearing. Falstaff sent me a look. "Is something the matter your ladyship? You look troubled."

I felt my brow crease in worry. "I've just got a bad feeling about this battle." Falstaff looked at me in concern but didn't say anything more as we walked.

As the afternoon went by, the day grew colder bringing large dark clouds up ahead in the sky. It felt like Archenland knew what was coming. And it didn't get any better by the time we reached the woods sitting along the edge of the border into Archenland. Coupled with high winds, wave after wave of rain pelted against our tired bodies until we was drenched through and miserable. Edmund still wanted to ride on as Archenland's need for our help became a top priority and that it was our duty as fellow comrades to come to their aid as soon as possible.

"Edmund, will you please stop for a moment and listen to us?" Lucy exclaimed with a puff as she stepped right in front of her brother with her hands on her hips. Lucy and Sir Peridan had forced Edmund to stop for the others to rest under a small area where the trees' branches were closely branched together to form a thick canopy above. Falstaff, Corin and I were all huddled together underneath one of these said trees but it was still a struggle to stay completely dry. I noticed Corin shivering in his soaking tunic but he didn't make a complaint at all - which was saying something, because Corin is very opinionated. Especially at times like now for example, when Edmund was acting like a royal ass.

Edmund dismounted from Philip and landed in a puddle of mud, shaking the rainwater from his hair which is stuck to his neck and forehead in a mess. Stroking the side of Philip's neck, Ed turned to his little sister. "Fine, I'm listening."

Lucy smiled and straightened up. "Good. I propose that we take a break for a couple of hours to rest and have dinner. We have walked all afternoon and I'm sure after having something good to eat, it will help revitalise our troops and we'll more than double our chances of reaching King Lune's castle in time. We'll send Sallowpad with a message to King Lune stating that we are on our way and not to worry."

I could see the reluctance on Edmund's face as he thought. After a moment he turned to Falstaff. "What do you think Falstaff?"

Falstaff stepped forward and crossed his arms in front of him. "I agree with her majesty Sire. If we do not rest the troops, they will not have enough energy to fight in this battle." Edmund sighed and pressed his forehead against Philip's neck. The old horse nudged his king's shoulder in comfort and nipped him lightly on the arm.

"Although you are my king and my friend Sire, I must say my hooves are very sore and my belly is in need of some hay. Perhaps a short while would do." Philip spoke gently and he stepped from hoof to hoof. Edmund looked up at Philip and nodded.

"Okay, but only for a short while. Sir Peridan, would you please alert the troops and tell them we will be staying here a short while. Tell them to set up small fires to help dry and warm up." Ed instructed.

"Already on it, you're Majesty." Sir Peridan nodded and immediately set off. I pushed away from my tree as Lucy made her way over towards us, wiping the rain from her brow with a bright smile.

"I knew I'd convince him. My charms are working after all." She chirped with glee, glancing over her shoulder at Edmund as he led Philip towards cover. She turned her attention back to Corin and gasped. "Corin, you look cold. Why didn't you speak up?"

Corin shrugged and sneezed. "Archenland has some quite cold winters so I'm used to it." I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"Go with Queen Lucy and she will get you warmed up and something to eat." I told him, ruffling his hair affectionately. "Don't cause any trouble though."

"What are you going to do?" He asked with a curious frown. I rummaged in my bag and pulled out an empty phial holding it up for Corin to see.

"I am going herb hunting." I answered with a grin as Lucy rolled her eyes. "According to my dear friend Ivy, there is a flower deep in these woods with blue thorns that mixed with tonic water and essence of Belladonna, has the properties to cure poor sight. It could come in handy."

Corin frowned in suspicion. "I've never heard of a flower like that. Are you sure that's what she meant?"

I nodded. "Of course. She also said that if I crushed the petals of the flower with a Bezoar and spread it across the forehead of a patient it would also cure wrong-sighted curiosity too." I noticed Lucy snigger into her hand behind Corin. He narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips.

"You're pulling my leg aren't you?" I nodded with a cheeky smile, ruffling his light hair affectionately as he pouted. Corin groaned as he tried to push away my hand and straighten his hair at the same time.

"Go on, off you go. I'll see you shortly." I watched them walk off towards the rest of the troops who were busying themselves with gathering firewood. I hope this rain would clear up soon or we'll be miserable for the rest of the day. Shaking my head I pocketed my phial and turned around only to find Falstaff smirking to himself from beside our tree-shelter. I let out a small giggle. "What is it that seems so funny, Falstaff?"

"Oh, just that I remember Ivy once used that excuse on me before. It works like a charm." He smiled fondly. "Although back then she told me that it cured ill-advised sensibility."

I gave him a puzzled look. "I'm not quite sure I understand what you mean."

Falstaff replied with a rueful smile. "Let's just say she was a very..._forward_ dryad when we were young. It's a wonder I didn't spot her feelings before." He pushed away from the tree trunk and left without another word, leaving me alone in the rain still as confused as before.

A cold drop of rain dripped and slid down my spine and I shivered. _I had better seek some shelter or else I'll develop a terrible cold._ I thought as I hurried along through the trees until I came across a number of Narnians heading towards me, tired but relieved expressions on their faces as they went. I spotted Phillip standing beside two huge solid trees. I hurried over as the rain trickled lightly down the back of my neck. Phillip lifted his head and shook his mane in greeting and I stroked his long nose. I glanced around us. Edmund wasn't anywhere to be seen. "Phillip, have you seen his majesty anywhere?"

"He won't be long. He has just some business to take care of for a moment." I frowned at the news of this. Edmund hadn't spoken to me since our arrival at noon today. That was more than four hours ago.

I bit the inside of my cheek and scratched Phillip between the ears. His ears flicked in happiness in response. "Phillip, have you seen Edmund acting peculiar lately?"

"In what way would you consider peculiar Milady?" he replied curiously. I thought of our conversation on the ship just before we arrived. I could hear the concerned tone in his voice when he asked me about my nightmares and I bit my lip.

"Have you noticed him acting strangely around..._me_ for example?" I whispered feeling my cheeks flush in embarrassment. Phillip snorted and pawed the ground. "It's just I've heard some strange gossip and I..." I trailed off as Phillip lifted his head to me once more and nudged my shoulder.

"His majesty has only ever acted as he normally does around you Milady. Although he has been quite anxious this afternoon I've noticed." I ignored my heartbeat quickening in double time upon hearing this curious news.

"Perhaps he is nervous about this battle. Aslan knows I am."

"Why are you nervous?" Edmund suddenly interrupted from behind us causing me to jump in surprise. I narrowed my gaze at him to which he returned.

"Ed, didn't anyone tell you it's rude to sneak up and listen in on someone's conversation?" Edmund didn't look amused at all. He continued to meet my gaze, crossing his arms in front of him and raising to his full height. I felt my heart falter deep inside my chest. I hadn't realised how tall he had gotten over the years. Edmund took a step towards me, still silent in thought, his eyes calculating every move. I wondered if this was what Edmund was like in court. The forest around us became still, waiting with bated breath for something to happen. Edmund raised his hand and patted Phillip on his neck.

"I shall leave you two alone. Excuse me Sire, Milady." Phillip announced suddenly as he slowly walked away. Then we were alone. Despite the rain stopping the clouds still remained behind as if waiting to unleash a wave of rain at an unexpected opportunity. There was no one but us in the area, the troops far in the distance and barely seen because of the thick trees and bushes. I looked up at Edmund and watched as stared at me. There was a look in his eyes I couldn't figure out. Anger? Disappointment? Betrayal..?

Edmund took another step forward and a crease appeared on his brow. "What else did you dream about when we were in Calormen?" He asked in a strangely calm voice. I felt my knees begin to shake so I took a step back. Edmund followed me. I swallowed and told him the truth, knowing that if I held it back now he would only worry.

"I dreamt that we were going to war with Calormen." I whispered to him as images from my dreams played before my mind. "People from all sides being slaughtered, Narnian and Human alike and it was a bloodbath."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"You know how dreams are. The more vivid they become the quicker you forget them. I only remembered bits of it and thought nothing of it. I didn't think it was going to happen." I shuddered at the picture of a faun lying in a pool of his own blood as his eyes became empty of life. Who could it have been? It wasn't Mr Tumnus because he didn't come along with us, choosing instead to stay behind to look after Susan and Ivy for us. Then I realised I didn't want to know who it was. I heard Ed sigh as he ran a hand through the hair at the back of his head.

"Can you remember what else happened?" he said anxiously. "It's important we know at least something about this battle." I almost shook my head but I hesitated. Ed raised his eyebrow. "Alexandra, tell me what you saw."

"I can't." I barely heard myself whisper. Suddenly Edmund grabbed my arms and shook me, a desperate look growing madly in his eyes.

"Alexandra, you must tell me! If there is anything that can help us save some bloodshed then you must tell me." I suddenly felt out of breath, like I'd been chased by something frightening. I swore that Edmund's hands were tightening around my arms, squeezing and squeezing like a metal vice until I almost felt faint. I tried pushing against his chest and stumbled backwards into a tree, panting and wheezing in shock. Edmund let go and gathered me into his arms, my head resting against his sopping shirt. "Oh no, I'm sorry Alexandra. I didn't realise..."

A moment later the panic was gone and I could speak. I shook my head in confusion and pulled away. "That was strange..." I muttered wondering why I starting panicking when Edmund grabbed my arms. My head started pulsing like a headache was coming along. I ignored it and leant back against the tree.

Edmund watched my every move with concern before he turned away and started pacing in thought. After a moment he faced me with a pleading look in his eyes. "Please Alexandra, if there is anything at all, tell me."

I shook my head feeling tears in my eyes. "You'll do something stupid Ed if I tell you and I can't let you do that."

He threw his hands in the air and let out a frustrated growl. "I order you to tell me Alexandra, not only as your friend but as your King."

"I'm trying to protect you Edmund, why won't you let me do that?" I felt my voice shake as I spoke and he stared back at me in fury.

"Why do you need to..." he trailed off as a crease appeared on his brow. I clamped my mouth shut in panic. "Something's going to happen to me in this battle isn't there? Isn't there?" When I didn't answer I knew he had figured it out. "You've seen me die in this battle so you think that if you don't tell me, you can then do something stupid to try to protect me."

I shook my head even though he was right. "I don't want you to get hurt again Edmund. I can't bear to watch you almost die again."

"And I don't want to watch _you_ die trying to protect me!" he snapped, anger dripping off every word he spat. He fell silent as he breathed long soothing breaths through his nose and when he opened his eyes, they were full of desperation. It seemed like he had aged fifty years when he still looked twenty. "I have a right to how I want to die and I trust Aslan enough to let me go how I want to with honour. I don't want you to fight or be anywhere close to this battle for you to do something stupid."

I stared at him in disbelief. "You can't be serious Ed. You know I'd worry."

"And you think I wouldn't if you were in this skirmish? Surely you must know I..." He trailed off and turned away from me, his body tense and slightly trembling. A spike of curiosity entered my mind as I stared at him.

"Surely I must know what?" I whispered. I wiped my eyes dry as our surroundings started to become lighter. I wondered if any of the others were going to appear. I found I didn't really want them to.

"It doesn't matter. Forget I said anything." He spoke over his shoulder through gritted teeth. I stepped toward him and he tensed.

"Surely I must know _what_ Edmund?" I raised my voice from a whisper feeling my heart beating in anticipation for his answer.

"Just forget it Alexandra." Edmund began to pace back and forth, trying to release some of his tension through walking.

Blowing out a breath of frustration I stepped in front of him, pressing my hand on his chest to halt him. "Damn it Ed, just tell me already."

His eyes was closed and his hands are shaking. A minute passed in silence before he ran his hands through his hair and groaned. "Oh to hell with it."

Suddenly his hands grasped my cheeks, lifting my head until I was looking at him before his lips descended on my own, pushing me back into the tree trunk and holding me there as he kissed me. I was frozen with shock as my eyes closed in bliss to his mouth pressing against mine. My hands fumbled against his chest falling to his waist as I grasped his shirt, tightening my fists in the fabric. There was no overwhelming taste on his lips and he was a little clumsy, but I found I didn't care. The only thought running through my head was that he was so close to me. My heart started to beat erratically as Edmund's hand moved down to my waist and around to my back, pulling me against him.

When he suddenly pulled away I stared at him in surprise, the slight pressure of his lips still lingering on my mouth as I watched him catch his breath. I was speechless. I was completely dumbfounded. I hadn't a thing to say except something that fell out of my mouth before I even realised it. "Edmund, did you just kiss me?"

A bright pink flush appeared on his cheeks in embarrassment. "I'm sorry Alexandra. I don't know what came over me. Sorry."

"You just kissed me." I say almost breathlessly, my heart beating a million beats a minute. Edmund stepped back and turned away, his gaze looking everywhere but at me. A thousand questions filled my head and began to circulate around my mind when he let me go. My body protested in disappointment as a hollow empty feeling began to grow inside my chest.

"I know. I know you're uncomfortable with these kinds of things. I promise I won't do it again." He muttered as his hands fidgeting with his shirt and leather guards. "I've got to go. Sorry. Just...bye."

I shook my head out of the trance I was in and my gaze followed his exit, leaving me leaning against the tree trunk on my shaky legs. _What..? He just...Edmund just kissed me...and he's leaving me straight after..._ As Edmund slipped past a thicket of bushes, Lucy appeared frowning as she passed her brother glancing at me in curiosity. "What is going on here? I heard shouting."

I blinked myself out of the last of my trance and stared at Lucy in surprise. "What? Oh sorry, Edmund and I had a argument." Lucy raised her eyebrow and crossed her arms in front of her.

"Corin tells me that you and Edmund have fought a lot recently. Has something happened that I should know about?" Lucy questioned as she looked me straight in the eye. I sighed, suddenly feeling very tired.

"Not anything that Edmund has just found out. I'm sure he'll tell you later." I tried to think straight but it felt like my mind had taken a vacation and had gone back to repeating the image of Edmund kissing me again. I almost blushed as I remembered the feeling of his hands on my cheeks, his clumsy chapped lips pressing against my own and the small tingles that they left when he stopped.

"Alexandra! Are you even listening to me?" Lucy snapped her fingers in front of my face. I shook the fog from my mind once more and tried concentrating on Lucy who huffed with a small pout. "What has gotten into you today? You've acted very strangely recently."

"I'm sorry Lucy." Pressing my hand to my head, I tried to ward off the headache growing on my forehead. "I'm sorry...it's just...Lucy, your brother just kissed me." Lucy scoffed at me, rolling her eyes as she stood putting her hands on her hips but slowly as the penny started to fall, I caught her eyes take in the way I was still leaning against the tree for support, the way my chest was still heaving in delight and the large dopey smile growing on my face, and her jaw dropped in astonishment.

"By Jove, he's finally done it." she laughed, her hands pressing lightly against her chest. "Poor timing, I say but he's finally told you." I blinked and stared at her in confusion.

"Told me what?" I asked her only to see her smile drop from her face. She stared at me incredulously.

"By the mane, I thought you were observant! And here I was thinking Falstaff was joking when he said you had your head in the clouds sometimes." She shook her head as she stared at me with a dead-pan look.

"He said _what_?" I narrowed my gaze at Lucy but she looked up to the sky before she pressed her fingers against the bridge of her nose.

"What does it normally mean when someone kisses another being?" Lucy said slowly looking incredulously at me. I couldn't come up with a straight answer so Lucy rolled her eyes in disdain. "Look we don't have time for this now. Corin's knocked over Thornbut and he's damaged his ankle even more now. You need to come and have a look at it."

I let Lucy drag me by my wrist towards the others only to hear a huge commotion. Lucy huffed and pushed her way through the throng of soldiers. "Excuse me, coming through. Excuse me!" she said loudly until we broke through into the middle of a small clearing. Hunched over and groaning in pain on the ground was Sir Thornbut, clutching his leg and with blood pouring down the front of his mouth from his nose. I let out a breath and rolled my eyes. I knelt beside Sir Thornbut and pinched the bridge of his nose, gesturing that he should do the same.

"This is too much Corin! Must you make a nuisance of yourself at every turn we make? I'd rather have a regiment of hornets than to have you here any longer!" Edmund shouted angrily at Corin who looked a little ashamed of himself. Either that or he was cowering slightly under Edmund's gaze. Lucy smacked her brother's arm and glared at him.

"Take back that comment Edmund." she fumed pointing a thin finger at his face. He shook his head and opened his mouth to say something else but Lucy cut him off with a look. Calmly, she rose to her full height which, remarkably is up to her brother's chin, and rested her hands on her hips. "Edmund," she spoke in a sickly sweet voice which sent shivers down my spine. "Retract that comment at once or I shall have to tell Peter and you know how he gets when he's angry."

"Don't bring Peter into this Lu," he fumed and I noticed him slowly beginning to calm down. "Corin has deprived us of a seasoned warrior just before a battle for goodness sake and he's been nothing but trouble this whole trip."

"It doesn't matter Edmund. Take back that comment and apologise or Peter will know everything." She replied stubbornly. I bit my lip to stop the childish laugh creeping up my throat. Edmund stood still for a second trying to stare down his little sister only to let out a breath.

"Fine." He muttered. He turned to Corin, who had watched the exchange in thin amusement, and kicked a small stone into a bush. "Corin, I apologise for the comment and hope you will forgive me for saying such a thing."

Corin nodded vigorously, preferring not to dig him into deeper trouble. However, Lucy turned to Corin next and he flinched under her gaze. "Now Corin apologise to Sir Thornbut for -"

"Um, excuse me your majesty," Sir Thornbut spoke in a thin nasally voice as he pinched his nose. "It wasn't the boy's fault. I slipped on a stone and fell on my nose, breaking it and sprained my ankle. I'm afraid I didn't watch where I was going. I was just trying to tell his highness that he is to be watching the battle instead of participating, as were his majesty's instructions." He gestured to Edmund, who was pacing off his anger. I checked his ankle gently touching the swelling limb and tutted.

"Sir Thornbut is not going to be able to walk for at least a fortnight. His nose should be alright for now until the bleeding stops but I'll have to set it soon or it'll be too crooked to breathe through." I concluded, turning next to clean the blood off Sir Thornbut's face. "Corin could you be a darling and fetch me some water."

A moment later I was handed a skin bottle of water to which I began pouring some on a cloth. "Thank you Corin." I said, dabbing the cloth on Sir Thornbut's face.

"Lady Alexandra I'm over here." I looked up to see Corin, standing beside Lucy and Edmund with a small smile on his face. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned around to see Corin stood by my shoulder as well.

"Oh my goodness," I gasped, leaping up in surprise as my heart stuttered in my chest. I glanced between the two Corins' in confusion and frowned. "My, how did you get here?"

"Didn't Queen Lucy tell you? My double's back. We found him staying just over there by that house under that tree." Corin grinned as he swung his arm around the other Corin's shoulders, pulling him into a tight, sideways hug.

I didn't bother looking for which tree he meant as I stared at the two Corins stood together. "You must be Shasta then." I spoke kindly to the Corin who gave me the water skin. He nodded uncomfortably from besides Corin, looking so different from him and yet so similar too. Shasta is tanned impeccably compared to Corin but he had the same shade of hair that Corin had, if not a bit lighter due to the sun. He was wearing the same scruffy clothing that we had seen him in at Tashbaan and his feet were now bare and covered in dirt and small pink scratches. The only difference that I could see was the small dark mole on the side of Shasta's neck where Corin's neck was clear.

"Why so shy, Double?" Corin grinned jovially. "We can have so much fun together now. Imagine how Father will react when he discovers my new souvenir from that ghastly Calormen."

"I am not a souvenir." Shasta said quietly, looking at Corin with wide eyes as he pulled out of his grip. "Am I really to be a slave again?" Corin stared at him with a frown before he smacked his forehead.

"Oh of course! No that was silly of me. You can be...my new partner in crime! Yes, that'll be fun." Corin clapped his hand on Shasta's shoulder. "We are going to be the best of friends I tell you, my dear sir."

I heard Lucy giggle quietly into her hand as she watched the two talking. "As if you didn't have enough trouble Edmund, now you have twins to look after."

"Alexandra can look after them both." He crossed his arms and shook his head at the two boys in front of him. I shot him a look.

"Excuse me but where is my say in that?" I exclaimed, striding up to Edmund. All around me I noticed some of the knights turn to me in surprise. Corin and Shasta fell silent as Corin turned to watch with a frown.

"Well Thornbut can't look after Corin now that he's damaged his ankle and you are not going near this fight, so you are in charge of Corin." he said looking me straight in the eye. "Don't argue with me Alexandra, my word is final."

"The hell it is!" I fumed causing Lucy to stare at me in shock. "You can't make me stay away from this. I won't let you. You can arrest me if you want but I am still going in that battle as a medic Edmund."

Edmund narrowed his gaze at me and I could see he was getting angry but I didn't care. He could get angry all he wanted but I was still going to that battlefield if he wanted me to or not. I felt a hand on my arm as Falstaff pulled me to the side. I didn't even know he was nearby until now. "Falstaff let me go. Let go of my arm!" I protested as he dragged me away to a quiet area where there was barely anyone around.

"Milady," he murmured in my ear although my glare was still on Edmund. "Milady, you can not defy your King, that is an act of treason. It doesn't even matter if you are the Pevensies' ward or not, if you go against them you can very well become exiled from Narnia. Calm down and do as you're told for once."

"But he's acting like a foolish ass!" I snapped.

"So are you." He said reasonably and I glared back at Edmund to see him in the middle of a heated argument with Lucy. I felt my eyes begin to well up in fear. My plan was falling apart already before I had even a chance to enact it.

"I can't be on the sidelines Falstaff..." I shook my head, clenching my hands into fists at me sides. Falstaff sighed and rested a hand on my shoulder.

"There isn't much I can do Milady." He said solemnly. "You will just have to miss out this once."

I shook my head in defiance and stormed off unable to look at anyone, feeling my tears threatening to fall from my eyes. I couldn't let Edmund die, not even now when he was acting foolishly. My lips tingled in memory of his kiss. _I can't let him die now. I have to know why he kissed me._ I soon found myself in a clearing far enough from the troops but not far enough to be out of sight of the good giants that we had gathered along the way towards the Archenland border. In fact it was the same clearing that I had found Phillip standing on his own, the same clearing where Edmund had kissed me. Unsheathing on of my sais I threw it at a tree trunk and watched it embed itself deep into the wood, hearing a shriek of fury escape my throat as it hit. I took my anger out on anything and everything until I found myself collapsed on the damp ground, crying into my hands. I hadn't felt anything close to this since the first time we had come to Narnia and I had become angry at Edmund for accusing me of being crazy. I didn't like being like this. I couldn't think straight or rationally when I was this angry. It makes me say stupid, regrettable things that should stay in my head.

After what felt like hours, I heard heavy footfalls of hooves gradually getting nearer to me as Falstaff wrapped a cloak around my shoulders and lifted me up on to his back. I couldn't find the words to thank him nor did he say anything. We walked in silence once more as the troops moved on. I vaguely remember Corin and Shasta walking beside us. At one time Shasta opened his mouth to say something but Corin shook his head. I didn't notice when they left or when Lucy came, patting my thigh in consolation. I stayed as I was, sat still with my forehead pressed against Falstaff's shoulders and my hands holding tightly on to his waist.

Once we got over the border I became restless. My mind had started coming up with ideas to escape and sneak into the fighting without being caught. If I left Falstaff now would I be able to hide among the soldiers..? Had Edmund sent out an order that I was to be kept an eye on..? And who would look after Corin and Shasta if I ran now..?

_Stay put Alexandra and think your plan through..._I heard my grandmother's voice whisper to me in my head. I began to tap my fingers against my thigh in thought. I was just too wired to gain enough rest for the fight ahead. My thoughts turned from losing Edmund in the battle, to the arrow hitting his chest over and over before my eyes, and then replaying Edmund kissing me before repeating the process. I couldn't get away from him and he was being an idiot. I just wished he would leave me alone for a minute whilst I got my thoughts straight and then he could come back, provided he didn't mess them up again...

I let out a frustrated growl before I felt Falstaff stop beneath me. I looked up and stared at my surroundings letting out a gasp when I realised that we were alone apart from Corin and Shasta. I let myself slide off Falstaff's back and headed after the troops when I felt a Falstaff's hand firmly grasping my arm and tugging me back beside him.

"Milady, you must stay here." Falstaff spoke firmly as he held on to my arm. I tugged my arm in his grip and tried to pull away. He sent a long disappointed stare at me. "Milady, you must stop this. Are you really so eager to die or have you developed a taste for destruction?"

I shook my head. "Falstaff please..." I stepped towards him and lowered my voice, glancing over at Corin and Shasta knowing that even though they were facing away from me they'll listen anyway. "If you could stop your family from coming to harm, would you do everything in your power to stop that from happening?"

Falstaff stared at me silently, watching me with a pensive expression. He had to understand what I meant. I couldn't have explained it any simpler. He had to let me go. Falstaff let out a slow breath through his nose as he straightened up and looked down at me. "I'm going to do a perimeter check around the area. Watch over the Prince and his friend. Make sure that they are safe from harm and I should be back in ten minutes."

"What?" I blinked as he walked off swishing his long tail like there was nothing wrong in the world. Corin and Shasta turned to me with raised eyebrows. At the same time which was a little creepy but I thought nothing of it. Must be a strange coincidence.

"Lady Alexandra, where is Falstaff going?" Corin asked curiously whilst Shasta sat himself down beside a tree trunk, exhaustion sapping almost every bit of energy out of him as he did. He must have been travelling non stop since we had left Tashbaan. Poor boy.

I listened to all of Falstaff's words in my head, looking for the meaning behind each one until I figured out a small hunch and decided to act on it. I turned to Corin and Shasta, a plan already formed in my mind. "Corin, what arms have you got on you?"

"Nothing Milady, I must have misplaced my knife when I was in Tashbaan." He replied as I unsheathed one of my Sais and handed it to him. He stared at it in awe, taking it gingerly as if he might accidentally break it just by holding it incorrectly.

"Look after this. Use it only when you have to. Keep each other safe and do as you're told." I instructed. I turned to Shasta behind him. "Make sure Corin here stays put. If anyone you don't recognise comes nearby, hide and stay quiet." I turned back to Corin and squeezed his shoulder in comfort. "Do not even think of following me."

"You're leaving? But you can't leave us here." He frowned at me. I bit my lip and steeled myself.

"I'm sorry but I have to. You wouldn't understand..."

"What is there not to understand? You love him and he's probably going to be in trouble so you're going to check he's not in danger." I blinked feeling completely stunned. I let out a chuckle and shook my head, ruffling Corin's hair one last time.

"Yes, right. Just...do this for me, okay Corin?"

Corin continued to frown but he didn't say another word. I took a step back and then another until I was a few feet away. He still had not moved, just watched me as I turned around and began to run. Time had no concept for me. I ran and ran until I began to feel my chest constricting my breath, chasing after sodden footprints in the ground, streaking past broken branches, fallen leaves, squished berries and bread crumbs from a recent meal until I found myself at the bottom of a hill. At the top was Anvard and King Lune's extraordinary castle circled by mist and fog. The sounds of battle fell upon my ears and I began to climb with earnest, pushing myself higher and higher up the hill, focusing on my task. Streams of blood were beginning to puddle in the grass as I reached the top, dragging in ragged gasps and clutching a stitch in my side. _I should really start exercising more..._ I thought to myself as screams filled the air until it became a dull noise in the back of my mind.

My body was burning with fatigue as I pushed myself into the middle of the battle. I looked up to the sky to see the great talking eagles swooping down and grabbing Calormenes by the shoulders before picking them up and throwing them around as if they were dolls. Leopards, lionesses, panthers and cheetahs were hunting Calormen soldiers in huge packs, cornering them off as they fearfully tried to fight back. The good Giants that we had gathered along the way here were definitely putting up a good fight, smashing and crashing their way through the Calormen lines.

There was nothing else that I could do apart from look for anyone I could recognise among the throng of soldiers battling in the middle of the battlements. Both Narnian and Calormen soldiers are cut down as the battle entered its second hour. But I couldn't help everyone, there was no one else to help the wounded apart from the very few of the Anvardians who worked up in the castle of King Lune and even they were working at their full capacity.

A red fletched arrow flew by just inches from my left shoulder and stuck in the ground next to a dead faun. My heart thumped harder against my ribcage as I stumbled backwards out-of-the-way, tripping over a fallen sword and landing on my back on top of a cold stiff body. I bit back a scream as I scrambled away. The world around me spun so fast it made me sick and light-headed, until my eyes landed upon a figure far across the field near the battlements of the castle walls, struggling to push back two soldiers with just his sword and fists. _Edmund! _

I found myself running towards Edmund feeling my hands reach to my belt and pull out my Sais. As I ran my eyes fell upon an archer aiming his bow at Edmund. I skidded to a halt and raced towards the archer, my hand reaching down to my waist and unsheathed my last Sae. I was almost there. I picked up a rock and threw it at the soldier's crossbow. He let out a yelp as it struck his hand, knocking his aim as the arrow loosed into the foot of a passing Calorman soldier. The Archer clutched his hand to his chest and looked up at me as I clumsily threw myself at him and brought my Sae down into his chest. A screech left my throat that sent a chill up my spine. The Archer let out a grunt of pain and stared down at my Sae in his ribcage. He sputtered and stared up at me with light surprise. "F-forgive m-me Tash..." he whispered before his head fell back and he stared blankly at the sky. A deep rumble came from the sky like a growl of anger and I felt a drop of rain fall on my cheek.

_Oh no..._ I stared in shock my hands trembling as I scuffled back from the body I had just killed. I had never killed anyone in battle before not even accidentally. But I had murdered this man because he is going to kill Edmund..._was _going to kill Edmund... I felt sick to my stomach. I hadn't meant to kill him. Why didn't I just leave once I had injured him?

I turned away feeling utterly disgusted with myself and froze as my gaze fell upon a shadow in the trees. The figure was tall and dark and he was smiling at me. I gasped and scrambled away as Ashonit disappeared like a ghost. I stood up and ran out of sight. The battle was drawing to a close as the gates of Anvard opened and King Lune and his men entered the battlefield, finishing off the soldiers foolish to fight on against us. I craned my neck searching for Edmund or Lucy or anyone I could find. I thought I saw a glimpse of Corin and Shasta but I shook my head knowing that they would probably still be safe back in the woods where I left them. "Edmund!" I called searching everywhere for him among the throng of fighting. "Edmund! Lucy! Ed where are you?"

I ducked as a sword swung towards my head, rolling out-of-the-way and running away. I had to get another weapon, chiding myself for forgetting my Sae in the soldier's chest. The rain began to fall once more, fogging my sight until everything was blurry. A cheer erupted into the air and I realised with surprise as I ambled my way around that the battle was won. I wiped the water from my eyes and found myself by the castle gates in a crowd of guffawing soldiers. I looked up to see what was so funny to find Rabadash hanging from the castle wall screaming as he legs dangled and kicked beneath him. "A bolt of lightning will strike down on you! Tash shall strike you all down for making a mockery of Calormen!"

I pushed my way through to the front of the crowd and spotted Edmund facing Rabadash with a glare and a hint of amusement. "Take me down Barbarian and fight me like a man!" Rabadash yelled kicking his legs like an incessant toddler who had just been told off.

"Certainly," Edmund grinned as a glint appeared in his eyes. I had never seen him look so worse for wear. He is covered in blood and grime, his knuckles were split and bruised and he spat out blood from his nose as he unsheathed his sword and pointed it at Rabadash's throat. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time..."

"Not so your majesty," interrupted King Lune, a usually jolly round man with a smile as wide as his waist, stepping forward and pressing a hand to Edmund's chest. He turned to Rabadash and a look of discontent appeared on his face. "Had you asked this challenge a week ago I can assure you that anyone in King Edmund's kingdom, from the High King down to a Talking Mouse would have generously accepted the proposal. However, since you have come to my home of Anvard, wreaking war and bloodshed in a peaceful time without any provocation or defiance, you would be lucky enough not to be executed. Bind him and take him to the dungeons out of my sight at once. He shall be held to trial for this treachery."

King Lune's guards and noblemen did as they was told, unhitching Rabadash from a hook on the wall and dragged him through the mud into the castle. I let out a breath of relief and stepped forward watching as King Lune clapped Edmund on his shoulder. "You did very well Old Cock. This causes for a celebration!"

Edmund chuckled out a grin. "Any excuse for a party isn't it?"

"Of course! You should know that about me by now. Oh, Lady Alexandra, were you in the battle as well? Excuse my brashness, but you look positively awful." He gasped with a shake of his head. Edmund turned his gaze to me in shock.

"Alexandra? I thought I told you to stay with Corin and Shasta. How could you deliberately disobey my -"

I cut him off by throwing my arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight hug. "You're still alive!"

"Well of course he is. He's not called the best swordsman in Narnia for nothing now is he?" King Lune chuckled amusedly. I felt Edmund wrap his arms around my waist returning my hug.

"Alexandra, calm down you're trembling. Look at me, I'm fine. Just a few scrapes and bruises." He mumbled into my ear before holding me at arm's length so that he could look at the whole of me. "Why have you got blood all over you? You're not hurt are you?"

I shook my head but he continued to check over me. All around us, the Narnians and the Archenlanders were in the midst of escorting Calormene prisoners through the castle gates. A faun and a dwarf were in the middle of escorting a brutish Calormene with a long red beard past us when he caught my eye. There was a look I could describe in his eye but I couldn't find the time. In what felt like seconds, he had broken away from his escorts, swiftly unsheathed a dagger from the dwarf's sheath and threw it at my chest. A sharp pain exploded in my ribcage and I froze in panic.

"No!" I heard Ed roar as I fell back against him, my legs no longer able to carry my weight. Edmund eased me to the ground and pulled the dagger, now stained a rusty colour with my blood. I heard a scuffle as the Calormene was brought under control but all I saw was Edmund staring down at me in horror. "Alexandra, can you hear me? Look at me please, can you hear me?" I stretched my hand up to his cheek and pulled him towards me as I struggled to reach him. I wanted to get closer, so close that I could feel his skin against mine, easing the pain threatening to pull me under. I felt my mouth uttering words so quiet I could barely hear them. My gaze fell on his lips, so teasingly close, as tortuous as sin and I struggled closer.

"I'm scared Ed," I mumbled, choking on my blood as it dribbled out of the corner of my mouth. "I'm scared Ed, what's...going...happen?" I stared at him in terror as he held me tight.

"I'm going to save you Alexandra. I'm not going to let you die now." He declared as a tear slipped down his cheek. "You hold on now. I'm not going to let you go."

I whimpered in pain as more tears slid down my cheeks. "It hurts so much Ed."

"I know, but you've got to hold on a bit more. Help is on its way, just hold on." He begged. He turned his head away and bellowed another order, his whole body shaking in fury. I pulled him back around and shuffled up against him. I could hazily make out my blood spreading from my chest to my waist.

I gasped and stared into his eyes, pressing my forehead against his jaw. "Ed, make it go away. Make it better please..." I grasped his armour tightly and pulled myself up one last time. "Ed, kiss me better. Make the pain better." I reached up just as my chest protested in agony. The pain clawed at me, dragging me down to the ground where I knew I wouldn't get back up. I could feel myself shaking but I was so close. I could just reach his lips. I could taste blood as the pain raged and clawed at me. I touched my lips against his and closed my eyes.

And then I felt nothing.


	35. Rabadash the Ridiculous

_Hello!_

_Alright first, apologies that this update took so long. I have had to move into my own place due to family problems so I haven't got any internet except for when I visit my mum's and use her internet. So updates will be slow but its not something that I can control at the moment. I will do my best to update as often as possible but I'm asking if you can all be patient and I promise I will do my best not to disappoint. I'd just like to say that these next few chapters are what I am dubbing "the honeymoon period" in Edmund and Alexandra's relationship which ultimately ends up with something bad (which judging by most movies, books and other media, is common with most relationships, haha)._

_I haven't come across a song for this chapter but I'm not sure it really needs one. Thank you all for your reviews, (including the ones who tell me to get my ass into gear and update already). I hope you enjoy this chapter. The next chapter is called __**The Coronation of Prince Cor**__. I was going to put up a preview but from what I've written is a bit spoilery. _

_I'm not going to keep you waiting. Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**Rabadash the Ridiculous**

"NO!" I screamed as I woke up alone, watching as Edmund faded away into nothing but a memory. I blinked away the tears forming in my eyes and froze, staring at my surroundings. I was at home. I was in my old bed, dressed in my nightdress as if I had woken up from a bad dream. I could feel the scratchy, second hand cotton sheets against my heated skin as I sat up and shakily lit a candle beside my bed. As my eyes adjusted to the dim glow of the candle I felt my heart break as I stared around at my old room. Everything was just like it was before we were evacuated. Before the bombs hit the kitchen and nearly demolished half of the house. The black-out boards were in my windows, blocking the candle light from going outside and my usually dull beige curtains were closed to cover the remaining gaps. I have a relatively small room, just big enough for a small wardrobe, my bed and a small area on the floor for me to do my homework. I spent so much of my childhood in here...

I suddenly heard a noise downstairs. I froze, my gaze staring in terror at the door as heavy footsteps slowly started to move closer towards the staircase. As quietly as I could I scrambled from my bed and searched around for something I could use as a weapon. My hand rested on my waist looking for my Saes but found nothing. I bit my lip anxiously and continued to search until I finally decided to use my Greek myths book. I halted as I stared at it, turning the cover and finding nothing but smooth blank pages. Edmund's handwriting was gone. This was my original book. The one I lost when I first went to Narnia...

The noise crept closer and I tiptoed towards my door, gripping my book tightly in my hands. The closer I got the louder I could hear the voices. They were quiet at first but then they started to become more confident. There were people in my house. Was I being burgled? It had been known to happen whenever there was an air raid; orphans would sneak into the unoccupied houses whilst everyone was in their shelters and steal everything they could carry. I eased my door open and slipped through onto the landing. Shivers prickled up and down my spine as I stood at the top of the stairs and the whispers taunted me, talking about me behind my back. I shook my head and began to descend the stairs.

I heard the voices slowly carry up the stairs as I crept along the wall and silently made my way to meet them. They almost seemed like they were trying to keep their voices hushed and low. _How very like thieves..._I thought in disgust. How could they steal from my house? How could they steal from _any_ house! As I thought of a way to confront them, a shadow crossed the landing into the dining room. It was dim and cold, but a strange unearthly glow came from the room. My hands shook as I crept closer to the door, which had been left open just a bit, letting just a slither of light through the doorframe. My heart beat anxiously in my chest as my hand closed firmly around the handle, counting myself down and then I pushed the door open and leapt through the doorway brandishing my book and letting out a shriek loud enough for a banshee to hear fifty yards away.

"Stop! Stop milady please!" I heard a familiar voice in the gloominess of the room. I narrowed my gaze until they adjusted to the poor and noticed a large silhouette standing on his own beside the dining table.

"Falstaff..?" I gasped dropping my book carelessly on the chair I was sat on last night...I think...before I crossed the room and threw my arms high up around his waist. "Falstaff, it's so good to see you! I was beginning to think I was imagining things but...Falstaff, you're not here to burgle me are you?"

"Burgle..? No of course not. Where are we milady? I do not recall ever being here before. I am beginning to think I am imagining things too." He murmured and I could here the uneasiness in his voice.

"This is my home." I answered, pulling away and taking another look around the room. There was dust everywhere and everything had a slight coldness to it as though this house hadn't been occupied by anyone in years. And it was so dark! Where are all my candles? Where are my torches? In the dimness I noticed Falstaff stooping under the low ceiling of the room. He looked at me with worry.

"Milady, why are we here? All I remember is being in the woods in Narnia, checking the perimeter before…" He trailed off with a look of confusion. He raised his hand shakily to something behind me. I froze.

"What is it Falstaff?" I whispered in terror. Was there actually someone else in my house? Were they here to burgle me for real?

"Where is that light coming from?" he whispered. I turned to see what he was pointing at and found myself looking at a bright almost white light coming from the living room. I picked up my book again, gripping the cover anxiously as I stepped towards the hallway. I felt Falstaff grab my wrist. "Wait milady, perhaps I should go first in case it is dangerous."

Falstaff suggested as he pushed me behind him, ducking low so he could walk through the doorway. I followed shortly after as he led me through my own house to the living room. Falstaff pushed the door forward before creeping through the door. I stayed outside, waiting for his signal that it was okay to come in.

"Milady, I think you should see this…"

I cautiously walked through the door raising my book in defence. Falstaff was stood in the middle of my living room staring at the large gilded mirror hanging above my fireplace. The fire in the grate had burned down to a low glimmer but it was still relatively warm in the room. I heard whispers in my ears. Quiet whispers echoed around the room like static from a lightning storm. I turned to look at the mirror and froze, my book dropping out of my hand.

"By the mane…" I whispered as I stared in horror, feeling my eyes begin to sting. There was no comprehensible thought in my mind. If I had thought I was going mad earlier when I woke, I was definitely beginning to lose my mind now. There was no doubt now. I stared at the mirror, standing beside Falstaff, but our reflections did not stare back.

I watched with tears in my eyes as Edmund stood staring back with hard eyes in the mirror. His mouth held a tight-lipped grimace as he held a sobbing Lucy close to his chest, stroking her dirty auburn hair in comfort. His eyes were red and puffy I noticed as he fought back tears of his own. I turned to Falstaff, hoping that he would be able to come up with an idea as to what was going on but he only stared at the mirror blankly. The image morphed into another as Edmund paced back and forth whilst a sorrow faced King Lune tried to console him.

"I am sorry for your loss Edmund. Losing someone as close as -"

"She is not lost. She cannot be dead." Edmund snapped as he came to a stop. "Aslan promised that he would look after us all. He promised me that he would protect us, watch over us as we fought. He cannot break his promise and take her from me now."

"Your majesty, you have had a shock, as has your sister. Grief can be a terrible thing for someone so young. Believe me I had felt its cruel beating myself. But it will become easier I promise you this -"

Edmund furiously shook his head. "It won't. This I know of to be true. I cannot lose Alexandra or it will surely kill me too." He turned away from the old king and sat down in a chair, reaching over to a figure lying still in an infirmary bed. It took me by shock when I realised that the figure in the bed was me. Except that it wasn't. The woman in the bed was paler than me, her face bruised and scratched from the battle, her hair darker and dirtier than mine… I watched as Edmund took her hand in his and gently kissed the back of it. I felt a cold wall press against my fingertips and I found myself touching Edmund's image in the mirror, unable to touch him properly and I felt sick. I felt a wetness on my cheeks and then two hands on my shoulders as Falstaff tried to comfort me from behind.

"Milady," I heard him murmur in my ear. "What's happened to us?" It had been the most vulnerable I had ever heard Falstaff speak and it made him sound like he was a foal once more. My heart went out to him.

"You are both dead my children." We whirled around to the deep sorrowful voice of Aslan standing sadly beside my father's favourite armchair. "I am sorry."

"D-dead?" Falstaff replied, his bruised aged face looking more terrified and puzzled as he tried to comprehend what Aslan meant. "I can't…how can we be _dead_?" I felt my heart clench in my chest as I stared back at Edmund stroking my hand in the mirror. A tear fell from his eyes down his cheek and King Lune patted him silently on his shoulder before he left.

"Your time for rest has come Falstaff. You have lived a long life and you have died an honourable death. Come." Aslan spoke in a soft voice.

"What about Ivy and my son? They need me. What about my duty to Narnia?" There was a look of fear in his eyes at the thought of leaving Ivy and Oreius Junior that I have never seen in Falstaff before in all the time I have known him. I felt frightened too.

"Ivy and your son will mourn and grow knowing that you will be safe in my kingdom. Come my child, it is time to rest." Aslan smiled a wide feline smile, gesturing for Falstaff to follow him out of the room. Falstaff hesitated and looked back at the mirror. It occurred to me that maybe Falstaff saw not Edmund and Lucy but in fact his own family in Ivy and Oreius Junior.

"Please Aslan, may I say goodbye to them first? I do not wish for them to worry." Falstaff asked quietly. My heart beat in panic as I realised that he was going.

"What about me? I don't want to leave, I don't want to say goodbye." I demanded panic running through me at the prospect of moving on. I couldn't. Aslan turned his attention to me and I shrank back from the look on his face. He did not hold any sympathy for me. His face only held anger...and disappointment.

"Falstaff, if you would leave us for a moment. I must speak with Alexandra alone." Falstaff nodded and disappeared from my view. I wanted to call him back. I wanted him to stay a little bit longer.

I felt tears pushing themselves out and down my cheeks. "Aslan, please. I made a mistake. I don't want to die, please send me back."

"It is out of my power Alexandra. It was not I who took you from the land of the living but yourself." He said in a strangely flat voice, void of any warmth or affection.

"I saved Edmund's life. That archer would have killed him -"

"He never would have killed Edmund. Merely injured his shoulder. I would not let any harm come to any of you but you allowed the archer to be killed and give way for another path to take its place. Another where you were killed instead." I felt a sudden dread crash down on me as I turned back to the mirror. Edmund was still sat at the bed his eyes watching my body for any movement, tenderly stroking my hand and pressing his lips to my wrist as he did. I wanted to feel his kiss. I wanted to be there with him in the hospital not here in this stupid house forever.

"I can't leave him…or Lucy, or Susan or Peter or anyone. I'll miss them all so much." I sobbed. I turned back to Aslan and fell to my knees crawling up to him and reached out to his mane. "Please, Aslan there must be something you can do. I'll do anything if you send me back to them. I'm begging you."

Aslan watched silently as I cried at his paws. Shortly he spoke quiet words I so desperately wanted to hear. "If I agree to send you back to the world of the living, then I will ask something of you in return."

"Anything." I sniffed wiping my eyes and stared at him desperately.

"Sometime in the near future, tales of a white stag will come from the Western Wood. Once you hear of them you must come down to the Eastern shore where I shall be waiting for you. You must come alone."

"Why must I come alone?" I frowned looking at Aslan curiously as I began to sober up from crying so much.

"It does not concern you now child." I did as I was told and looked down at my hands. "Do not try to change what is to come again. What must happen will happen."

"But there are horrible things..."

"You chose this life did you not?" I nodded miserably and Aslan continued on. "Why did you choose this life?"

I knew the answer straight away. "I stayed because the Pevensies are my family."

"And..?"

"I love them. I love them more than my own family." And it was true. I could barely remember what life was like with them now. I can't even remember what my father's face looked like.

"They were there for you even in your darkest moment." Aslan said solemnly.

I nodded. "When I discovered I was related to the White Witch..."

"My child, I'm afraid your darkest hour was not then. You do not remember now but you will..." Aslan said quietly looking at me with his piercing amber eyes. I felt my eyebrows crease anxiously.

"What do you mean?" I asked shakily standing up on wobbly legs. Did Aslan know something about me that I couldn't remember? My mind went back to the time I found the minute scar on the edge of my hairline that morning in Edmund's chambers. Edmund had said that I fell down the stairs and hit my head but I don't remember any accident. Surely that must be something I'd remember, right?

"It is time to go back. Remember what I said. I won't be able to send you back a second time. Do not disappoint me again." Aslan took a step towards me. I nodded my head in understanding. I was definitely not going to try something like that again. I paused and turned my gaze out of the room and towards the staircase in the dim light. The whispers started to fill my head again.

"Aslan, why can I hear voices in here? Is that bad?" I whispered.

"They are merely memories Alexandra. There is nothing to worry about." Aslan spoke casually. "In fact, this place is in your head and you are there lying in that hospital bed."

"Why can't I feel anything?"

"You are asleep. Not for long now though." A mischievous glint twinkled in his eye before he rose up on to his hind legs. "It's time to wake up Alexandra."

"Could you say goodbye to Falstaff for me?" I asked quickly knowing that I would feel guilty forever if I didn't. "And can you let him know that I'm sorry that he died."

Aslan nodded and shoved me with his huge front paws back into the air and crashing through the mirror. I opened my mouth to scream but no noise came out. I landed on my back in the bleak darkness feeling absolutely rotten before I groggily opened my eyes.

I found myself not to be in a hospital bed but in a large warm comfy bed with royal crimson blankets and throws on top of my bruised and battered body. I moved my head to the left and found a large vase completely full of bluebells, surrounded by dimming tea-light candles. Pale yellow light glistened through the window as the sun began to rise outside. I smiled, feeling the ache in my facial muscles as I forced them to work. I felt a shift on my mattress and I turned to find Edmund leaning forward in his chair and dozing with his head not far away from my hand. I reached out and stroked his black head of hair.

I felt his head shift underneath my fingertips as he looked up at me through half-lidded eyes. He blinked and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Alexandra..? Is that really you?"

"Well, who else would it be?" I croaked slowly with a smile. He suddenly leapt out of his chair and wrapped his arms around my shoulders in a tight hug.

"I knew you weren't dead. I just knew!" he whispered in my ear joyfully as he kissed my temple. "He gave you back to me. I have never prayed so hard in my life."

When he pulled away I tried to sit up but a sharp shooting pain pierced through my stomach. I gasped and looked down to see that I was dressed in a simple white nightdress. I touched my stomach and felt a thick bandage wrapped around my middle. Edmund caught my staring and nodded with a sigh. "The physicians had to stitch up your wound after they got the poison out that was on the blade."

"There was poison on the blade..." I glanced at him and he nodded.

"That was why you...why you left so quickly..." Edmund turned his gaze to the floor for a moment as he collected himself before settling himself back in his chair.

"Help me sit up will you Ed?" I croaked. Ed nodded and stood over me, sliding his arm under my shoulders and gently lifting me slowly up the bed until I was leaning back against my pillows. I groaned a little as my wound protested but it wasn't as bad as it was earlier. I grimaced and turned my attention to Ed, a look of concern etched all across his face. I patted the space on my bed. "Sit closer Ed, I'm not contagious."

"Are you sure?" Ed said. I let out a quiet chuckle and nodded. I felt my cot dip under Edmund's weight and I took his hand, pressing the back of his hand to my cheek and closed my eyes with a smile. When I opened my eyes I caught him staring at me with a strange expression on his face. It was gone within seconds.

I tugged his arm gently. "Closer." I croaked as Ed shuffled up the cot towards me but still I tugged him close until he was practically on top of me. "Lie down please."

"Uh...okay, but only for a short while." I felt him shift until he was lying down beside me, his arm cushioning my head against his chest. I took a deep breath and tucked my face into the crook of his throat. A sob escaped my throat and before I knew it I was weeping into Ed's shirt and he was silently comforting me, stroking my hair away from my face.

"I'm sorry Ed. Please forgive me." I sobbed with a sniff. "I couldn't see any other way. I just couldn't bear to watch you almost die again, I just couldn't. I won't ever do it again I promise."

"Ssh, its okay, it's okay." He whispered holding me tightly against his chest. I shook my head and looked up at him.

"No it's not okay." I protested as I got up gingerly and faced him. "You told me not to protect you but I did it anyway and you're not being angry." I wiped my eyes as tears flowed down my cheeks. "You have to be angry with me s-so that I can find a way to m-make it up to you so you can then f-forgive me."

"Stop it Alexandra." He tried to pull me to rest on him but resisted, wiping my cheeks as my throat grew hoarse.

"You have to h-hate me Ed! Why aren't you b-being angry?" I shoved him in the chest without meaning to and he grabbed my wrist before I could do it again.

"It's not in me to hate you. I can't." He leaned forward and pressed his forehead against mine and closed his eyes. "I'm just so relieved that Aslan gave you back, that you're alive." I heard him sniff as he pulled away, swiping his cheekbone as he went.

"No, no, no Edmund, don't cry. Please don't cry. No..." I pulled my hand away from his and wiped his cheeks. I leaned forward and kissed his forehead, then the top of his head and then his cheeks until he stopped me, his hands on my face with his thumbs stroking my cheekbones.

"Stop it." he said firmly and I fell silent. "You're right I should be angry with you but I can't. I will settle for this though..." I looked back up at him and saw the pain in his eyes. "If you ever try to do something like that for me again, I will never talk to you for the rest of our lives. Not even at mealtimes or just to be civil."

"Okay, I promise." I nodded and kissed his forehead again. When I pulled away I was surprised to feel him kiss my jaw, feeling my breath hitch when he slowly reached my lips before pressing against them gently in a chaste kiss. When he stopped I pulled him back in another desperate kiss to which he gratefully accepted. I felt a smile on his mouth and I pulled away for a moment to stare at him. There was the most peculiar blissful expression on his face, one I have never had the pleasure of seeing until now. It was odd in a way I suppose to have known him all my life and not ever have known what could make him act like this. "What is this?" I wondered in quiet thought. Edmund opened his eyes and caught my gaze with amusement.

"I believe that _this_ is kissing Alexandra," he whispered with a peck to my lips. I rolled my eyes.

"You know what I mean Edmund." I gave him a knowing look to which he smirked.

"Well -"

There was a sudden noise at the door and Edmund fell silent as we watched it. "Edmund, sit down in the chair and pretend you're asleep. Go on, quickly." I nudged him away and laid myself down, smoothing out the covers as I did. I closed my eyes and listened as footsteps stopped outside the door, a quiet creaking before a moment later the door closed and the footsteps faded into silence. I felt Edmund's fingertips brush against the back of my hand.

"They're gone. It was probably just one of the servants checking up on you. They're usually up at this time." Edmund said in a hushed tone. I stared down at our hands and thought back to our first kiss in thought. "What is it?"

I glanced up at him and found a crease on his brow in concern. "Edmund, you kissed me before we fought in the battle."

He was quiet for a moment before he slowly let out a breath and looked away almost red-faced with embarrassment. "Yes, I did."

"Am I right to think that you have...that you could possibly have feelings...for me?" I couldn't look him in the eye so I continued to gaze at our hands, watching as they stayed still but tense on the covers. "However small they might be..."

"Well, I'm not sure about how big they are but I...yes, it could mean that." Edmund's hand squeezed mine and I looked up to see him struggling to meet mine. I watched him swallow and scratch the back of his neck. "Is that alright?"

"I can't say for sure at the moment Edmund. With everything that's going on, it's a little overwhelming to say the least." He nodded, stroking my knuckles with the pad of his thumb. "Come and rest on the bed. Your back must be sore."

"But what if we're caught..?"

"It won't be for long, come on." I shifted over as much as I could and tugged the quilt off the top of the covers, tucking it around Ed as much as I could reach before we nestled close and rested our heads on the pillows. The silence was comforting as the room lightened slowly and cast new colour into the chambers like a painter with a new canvas. I looked up at Edmund pressed a small kiss on his cheek. "I know I don't say this as often as I probably should Ed, but I do care for you and your siblings."

"And I you, probably more than I can say is appropriate but I don't doubt that's no secret now. Heavens know my family can see it..." he whispered as he laid his arm on my waist. "I only wish to not put you in any further danger."

"_You_ put me in danger? Absurd." I shook my head. "I'm the more reckless of us both, I can see that now. If any one is going to put me in danger, it would be me."

"Don't say that."

I shrugged. "It's true."

"Maybe, but I wish to be ignorant a little while longer. Perhaps we should schedule you an appointment with the wise owls once we're home for therapy?" I let out a chuckle and felt him smile into my temple. "Perhaps we should all book an appointment with the wise owls for that matter."

A sudden thought appeared in my head. "My goodness, Edmund have you had a chance to write to Peter? I haven't thought of him in a long while. Is the fight going well?"

"I haven't had the chance but Lucy sent off a letter a few days ago from what I could tell. The last I heard from Peter was that it was going well and that he should expect to be back to meet us at home." I squeezed Edmund's hand in relief.

"Oh that's so wonderful to hear. I feel so guilty for not enquiring sooner." I smiled tiredly. "It would be nice to have everyone back for a family dinner." A lump appeared in my throat suddenly as I remembered my dream. "Oh no..."

"What's the matter?" Edmund had been wriggling to get himself more comfortable but he stopped and stared at me.

"Falstaff's dead." A tear fell from my eye as I remembered the old centaur. Although I never saw much of him, he had always struck me as a foster-father figure whilst growing up in Narnia. I remembered the talk we had at the riverside, the sword training, and the rare moments when he would join us on a walk through the Western Woods.

"How do you know?" Edmund asked as he pulled me into his chest.

"I have a hunch about it." I replied hugging Edmund tightly around his waist.

"Poor Ivy. We shall have to tell her when we get back."

"I'll tell her. She'll want to hear it more from me I should think." I wiped my eyes and shook my head. "I feel so terrible."

"We should rest and think more of it tomorrow. We have Rabadash's trial coming up later on this afternoon." He muttered as he tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear.

"Oh that should be fun," I smiled sarcastically. "It should be entertaining for a little while at least."

"Are you sure you'll be well for it?" I felt Edmund squeeze my hand in concern but I shrugged.

"I doubt it but I'd like to be there. I want to see how Lucy and the others are." Edmund gasped suddenly and he turned to me with a smile.

"That reminds me. Do you remember Corin's little friend Shasta?" he inquired and I nodded. "Well, it turns out that they really are twins. King Lune confirmed it as soon as he saw them both together. It looks as though since Shasta – well he should be called Cor now – is the older twin, he is now the heir to the Archenland throne. He looked a bit white when he was told though."

"I'm sure he was. I thought that they might be twins." I smiled to myself. Edmund looked at me surprised. I shrugged. "Well, I had my suspicions. I noticed that when we found Shasta – I mean Cor – in the market place in Tashbaan, he had a mole on the side of his throat whereas Corin did not. Come to think of it, he probably should get that mole checked out just to be on the safe side."

I felt him shake his head, no doubt with a small smile, as we fell into a comfortable silence. The sun outside the window was slowly continuing to brighten the room but I felt too tired to want to get up. Instead I snuggled into Edmund's side and rested my eyes for a while, not exactly sleeping but not exactly awake either. Just held stationary in limbo, I suppose. Just as I started to hear more frequent footsteps outside my door, I felt Edmund slowly getting up from the bed. "Edmund, where do you think you're going?" I smirked as I tightened my grip on his shirt.

"Not far." He replied gesturing to the chair. I let him go and he sat down, stretching his aching limbs and listening to the cracks he could hear in his neck. "By the mane...Honestly, I don't think I'll even manage to get through the front gates before I just collapse with exhaustion."

"Here, here." I nodded. "I'll have to see if I could find one of Ivy's herbal concoctions and see if they'll work."

"Like the "pick me up" solution that tasted like swamp water?" he raised his eyebrow at me.

I shuddered at the memory and suddenly felt a little nauseous at the thought. "Hopefully it will be nicer than that one."

"Somehow I doubt it." He said sardonically. He turned to look at the door and let out a long sigh. "I should probably get going. I'm supposed to be helping King Lune with preparations of Rabadash's trial this afternoon."

"Do you have to go now?" I felt a weight in my chest feeling that my time with Edmund was just so short even though it had probably been hours. "Could you not wait until they start serving breakfast at least?"

"Archenlanders are very early risers. I can imagine breakfast would be served in half an hour." I paled at the thought. _And I thought Lucy was an early riser..._

Edmund leant down and started to lace up his boots. "Oh, alright then. Will you come back to help me along to the trial?"

"Of course," he smiled and stood up, tucking in his shirt and slipping on his tan-hide jacket that was on the back of his chair. I was surprised (and a little relieved) that he had changed his clothes since the battle otherwise I'm not sure I would have coped. He leaned over and placed a kiss on my forehead. "Now you lie back and get some rest. I'll let the medics know that you've woken up and to bring some broth or something up."

"Oh good," I nodded leaning back into my pillows, suddenly feeling exhausted. "It feels strange to be looked after for a change."

"Well, get used to it. I'm not going to let you lift a finger until you have regained your full strength." I teasingly held up my little finger and he gave me a look. He headed towards the door but paused when he had his hand on the handle. "One more thing Alexandra..."

"Yes?" I looked up and saw him staring back nervously.

"Do you remember when we were on the _Hyaline_ and I asked whether we were courting?" he spoke slowly. I hesitantly nodded back feeling an uneasy lump in my chest. "Well, I didn't really get an answer from that day and it's been going round and round in my head all this time so I, um..."

I bit my lip in thought wondering what I should say. I never in my whole life believed I felt anything at all close to love. All I knew was that what I felt for Edmund was very strong, whatever it was. Perhaps it was Love. I didn't want to call it that though because I knew what I felt was so much stronger than such a common emotion like love. It was hard to explain. I also knew that I didn't want to hurt him, or get hurt myself for that matter. I weighed up my options and then looked at him in the eye. "If we take it slow, then I suppose we could make it work. Yes." I nodded and watched a grin explode on his mouth before he realised what he was doing, coughed and then nodded seriously, his smile itching to come back all the same.

"Good, very good. Right, well I'll see you later." He smiled as he headed out of the door and left me to rest.

I shook my head with a giggle. "He's such a numpty." I muttered as I made myself comfortable before blowing out the candles on my bedside table and fell asleep.

* * *

All I could remember from my dream when I woke some hours later was that I was twirling in a room before I got a headache. It had to be the oddest dream I have ever had and that's saying a lot when I think about it. I stared about the chambers and realised it must have been early afternoon because there was a fresh bowl of soup and bread sat on the table beside my head. Slowly I pushed myself up, picked up the spoon on the tray and took a sip of the soup. The sweet taste of carrots and the sharp zing of coriander met my tongue and danced a jig.

Once I finished the soup and the bread there was a knock on the door. "Come in." I called slowly lifting my feet out of the bed and wincing when I jostled my stomach too much. The door opened and a young woman came through the door. She was dressed quite plainly which suited her all round really.

She did a curtsy and smiled. "His majesty King Edmund has sent me to escort you to the trial. He apologises that he couldn't come himself as he is caught in the middle of the discussions."

"It's alright. I didn't think he'd be able to get away anyway." Once Edmund got started on democracy and fairness he just can't stop. "Could you help me stand up please? I'm a little wobbly on my legs at the moment."

"Of course, your ladyship." She did another curtsy before she hurried over and steadied me around my waist. Once I was up it wasn't long before I was dressed and heading down towards the courtroom. Standing nervously outside the courtroom was Sir Thornbut, his leg in bandages and leaning heavily on a wooden crutch.

"Milady, how are you feeling?" he asked as soon as he saw me.

"A little tender but I'll pull through. What about you?"

"I'm feeling well your ladyship. I only wish I could have helped in the battle and done my duty." He let out a low wistful sigh but then shrugged it off. "Have you seen Falstaff milady?"

I tensed at his name feeling a cold dread fill in my chest. "I – No I'm afraid I haven't." I mumbled quietly. Sir Thornbut huffed.

"It's not like him...I hope he's alright." He said before straightening up. "Shall we go in?"

"You were waiting for me?"

The red dwarf nodded. "King Edmund's orders; he said you might need a little help finding your seat." I nodded and let him lead me into the courtroom.

Archenland has a very different style to Narnia, as each style decorates and describes the history and culture of its country's people. Where Narnia was decorated with shades of gold and silver, almost like Aslan's mane, Archenland was decorated with bronze and greens and reds like that of a forest in autumn. Archenland was the first country to accommodate all-human inhabitants, its first ancestor dating all the way back to the beginning of King Frank and Queen Helen's reign.

Huge stone braziers held warming fires which lit up the room and made everything seem a little jollier. Rich red tapestries of countryside hung on the walls and images of various famous Kings and Queens shone brightly through the many stained glass windows. It was a beautiful sight to see. So much history. So much warmth. I believe that if I had not found Narnia to be my home first, I would have liked to have lived here.

I spotted Edmund pacing up ahead as Lucy, King Lune and some of his nobles and Sir Peridan sat arguing what Rabadash's punishment should be. Corin and Shasta - I mean _Cor_ – were sat aside from the group only listening quietly together.

"The scoundrel should be sentenced to death for the treason he has committed!" Sir Peridan shouted as he stood up from his chair. "If it weren't for him we wouldn't have to be burying our dead right this minute."

"Calm, Peridan." Lucy called soothingly. "We can't sentence him to death."

"Why not?" he exclaimed, eyes red and puffy as his voice grew hoarse with grief.

"We would be facing the wrath of the Tisroc if we were to sentence his only son to death." King Lune remarked massaging the side of his temple wearily. "And the Tisroc is a greater foe than Rabadash. The army that Rabadash brought with him wasn't even a third of the amount of the soldiers the Tisroc would bring in retribution."

"Well we cannot sit back and do nothing." Sir Peridan replied throwing his hands up in the air. "There are families who have lost loved ones. What do we say to them?"

"We are not saying we are going to do nothing," Edmund said quietly but the room fell silent to listen. "What we need is a sure plan of action that will not cause any more harm in the future."

"What about imprisonment?" I suggested as Sir Thornbut and I reached them. Everyone looked up in surprise to see me slowly making my way over to them. Lucy gasped and stood up throwing her arms around my shoulders in a fierce hug.

"Alexandra I thought you had left us for sure." Lucy wept tearfully into my hair. I winced as she pulled away and I gingerly clutched my stomach.

"It's okay, I'm not going anywhere." I tried to smile but I think it came out as a grimace. I felt Edmund's hands on my arms.

"Come sit down." he whispered in my ear as he helped me into a chair.

"Thank you." I breathed, holding tightly onto Edmund's sleeve until I was sure I was safe and then let him go. I turned to the rest of the debaters in the room. "Well, what about imprisonment? Is that an option we can take?"

King Lune shook his head. "To hold a member of royal blood in a foreign country could cause more trouble than it's worth your ladyship. Especially, if we do not have permission from the defendant's country to do so."

"Exile him back to Calormen." Lucy said with eyes as fierce as a forest blaze in the outback.

"And what if he tries to repeat his efforts to take Susan again?" Edmund countered crossing his arms in front of his chest but remaining put as close to me as would deem appropriate.

"We will then rectify that mistake. We shall draw up a clause in a treaty with Calormen that Rabadash must not set foot out of his country if this war is to be forgiven." A few of King Lune's noblemen murmured and nodded in approval and I couldn't help but agree with the soundness of her plan.

"It does seem like our best option." I shrugged looking up at Edmund. His mouth had formed a tight line.

"Very well, bring him in." King Lune sighed before he gestured to the guards standing to attention at the doors. The doors opened with a groan and Rabadash was brought in chained for safety of everyone else in the room. The scowl on his face was enough to sink a ship. The doors were shut firmly behind them as Rabadash was placed in the middle of the room.

"Prince Rabadash, son and heir to the throne of the Tisroc, lord of the desert and direct descendant of the God Tash." King Lune said in a bored flat tone. "Did I miss anything out?"

"You are all fools! Tash shall rain lightning bolts on your heads, I tell you now!" Rabadash spat at King Lune's feet.

"Did it ever get stuck halfway down?" Corin smirked with a chuckle.

"Corin," chastised King Lune from his seat. "It is neither clever nor witty to mock a man when he is down."

"Sorry Father." Corin mumbled. Sir Peridan stood up from his seat and addressed the prince in chains quite angrily.

"His majesty would have every right to swipe off your head for what you've done." He shouted. Lucy stood up and calmly sat him back down.

"Very true Peridan," Edmund nodded, his arms falling from his chest. "But I suppose even traitors can mend. I know of one who did and he is reminded every day of that regret." I glanced up at Edmund but he didn't acknowledge me. There was a look on his face that held a quiet guilt. Hidden from view of the others I took Edmund's hand in mine and squeezed it.

"You are to be exiled to Calormen and never to return." Lucy spoke with a mature reference that rivalled Susan. "If you do, then you will regret it."

Rabadash let out a cold laugh that sent shivers down my spine. "Are you threatening me? Are you serious?"

Suddenly there was a roar that echoed around the room deafening my ears. Rabadash cowered in fear, dropping to his knees and covering his head. I searched the room for the owner of the roar and found Aslan prowling into the room. "Rabadash, you let your pride rule your life. You show no humility and through this you will become exactly how you behave."

"Demon! This is blasphemy! You are unholy and worship the devil!" Rabadash began to rave scrambling as far away from Aslan as he could get but still Aslan advanced claws out and sharpened, a snarl on his feral feline face and his mane glistening like a blaze of fire. "Demon! Unholy hellspa -" He broke off making a loud deep bray.

I stared in horror as Rabadash began to morph into a creature. His ears elongated his mouth and jaw stretched, sprouting little dark hairs. The rest of his body shrunk as his legs and arms turned into little stumps. Within seconds Rabadash had turned into a shaking braying donkey.

"Rabadash, descendant of Tash, heed my word. Return to Calormen and enter the holy temple of your god in three days time. Once you reach the temple, repent and ask for forgiveness for one week and do not set foot from beneath its roof. Or stay like this forever." Aslan growled at the donkey which brayed and fled from the room, his hooves clattering against the stone as he went. Silence fell in the room as we stared after Rabadash.

A loud snort came from Corin and Cor stared at him in surprise. "Donkey...I get it. He's turned into an a-"

"Yes, we've figured that out son." King Lune guffawed into his hand. I felt a giggle escape my mouth and I flushed trying to cover it up. Soon everyone was laughing and joking, cheering up after the horrible time we'd been having.

"Now that business has been taken care of, I do believe that a coronation is in order for young Cor..." Aslan smiled and I caught Cor staring at Aslan nervously at him.

As everyone went about their own business, starting talks on organising Cor's upcoming coronation as he is the official heir of the Archenland throne. I looked up to see Edmund still stood by my side silently thinking. I could tell he was thinking by the troubled look on his face. "Edmund?"

He blinked and looked down at me. "Yes? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I was just wondering if you were okay." I said quietly slowly pushing myself out of the chair and onto my feet. Edmund grabbed my waist to keep me steady. "I know who you were talking about..."

He nodded slowly taking my hand in his and rubbing my knuckles with his thumb. "I know. I'm okay, I promise. Did you want to go rest?"

I nodded. "I think I'll just get an early night."

"Well, I'll escort you back." Edmund squeezed my hand.

"No, I'll be alright. You just enjoy yourself."

"Okay." Edmund leaned in to kiss me but I took a step back, glancing around at everyone to check that no one was looking at us. He raised my hand and pressed a kiss against the back of my hand. "Let me know when your ready." I nodded.

"Goodnight." I hugged him before leaving to go to bed. When I settled into bed my thoughts went to Edmund. I was happy that I was alive and able to stay with the Pevensies. I smiled falling into a deep, peaceful sleep.


	36. The Coronation of Prince Cor

_Hello! I'm back!_

_Sorry for the delay, believe me I don't like it anymore than you do. No internet access is a bummer on all proceedings but there's not much I can do about it. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. You guys are the ones who basically tell me week after week to get my butt into gear and start updating so thanks for that. _

_I don't quite know why but this chapter was quite difficult to write which may have resulted in this chapter being a bit late. There is a party in the form of Cor's coronation and everyone knows what a party is an excuse for so don't be surprised if Alexandra seems a little...off. _

_I am also sad to say that this is the last chapter in what I dubbed "The Honeymoon period" because as you can see now that all of the other plot arcs are out of the way, the real story can begin...Mwa, ha, ha!_

_The next chapter is called "__**Trouble is Brewing**__" and I have a little snippet of the next chapter._

"**By the mane Ed, can't you take a joke?" I grinned, leaning up and pressing a kiss to his lips. I felt his fingers weave into my sopping hair as he pulled me closer to him. My hands trailed down his arms, noting the cold thin linen of his shirt on his warming skin. I felt Edmund break away and start trailing kisses down my throat, feeling his hand lifting my thigh up around his hip. My breathing hitched and I opened my eyes. A dark figure loomed over us, a curved sword raised above his head. I screamed rolling us out of the way as the blade cut into the sand beside us. **

_I know, I can be very cruel. I'll not leave you waiting any longer. Enjoy!_

* * *

**The Affairs of the Heart**

**The Coronation of Prince Cor**

"I am not wearing that."

"But your ladyship, this is the height of Archenland fashion." The lady's maid replied holding up the bright purple dress that is encrusted at various points along the corseted bodice with amethysts and had at least seven large hoops stitched into the inside of the skirt.

"I'm a Narnian and I'm still not going to wear that. It's ghastly." I stared at it in horror as I sat up in bed with a book in my lap. I wasn't sure what the book was about, and I assume it was fiction, but it was detailing an adventure about a snail who wanted to become a lord over the slug kingdom. "Besides, I'm not allowed to wear corsets until I am fully healed."

"But your ladyship -" the maid protested but was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Come in!" I called from the bed and the door opened to show Lucy and a young girl at her side. The girl had long dark hair that fell down her back to her waist. She had very tanned skin and dark brown almost black eyes. When Lucy walked in confidently she followed warily as if at any moment she would be attacked. _I wonder what her story is..._

"Alexandra, how are you feeling?" Lucy smiled as she sat down on my bed and took my hand in hers. I glanced at the maid and she bowed her leave.

"Much better than before although I still feel a little tender." I said putting my book aside. I glanced at the girl who was staring around the room in awe. I noticed that her clothes, although Archenland style (thankfully not the "height" of the country's style) with long flowing skirts made of linen and made her look very feminine, didn't quite suit her. Or fit her for that matter. The dress seemed too big for her. "Who might this young lady be?"

The girl whirled around and stared at me nervously. Lucy chuckled a little. "Oh this is Cor's friend, Aravis. She came with him from Calormen but was staying with a hermit in the Southern Waste whilst the battle was going on."

Aravis gave me a tight smile. I returned one. "You can sit down if you want. I'm not going to tell you off for doing so."

She blinked before sheepishly sitting down in the chair which had been occupied by Edmund the other night when I woke. "You have a very beautiful room..." Aravis spoke in a thick Calormene accent that sounded lighter than the usual harsh brutal tone that you'd often hear with the other Calormen people.

"Thank you. It's not like home but it'll do." I shrugged and leaned back against my pillows. I turned to Lucy. "How have you been? I've been dying to...I mean _anxious_ to know what's been going on." I added when Lucy's expression turned a paler shade of milky grey.

"Well, we have Cor's coronation tonight which is basically a lavish over-the-top celebration that King Lune likes to throw and then we're getting ready to set off home as early as tomorrow at noon. The servants are currently packing the non-essentials as I speak." Lucy said flippantly waving her hand as if it were nothing interesting. She turned her gaze on me and a little mischievous smile appeared. "Soo..."

I sighed. "What is it Lu?"

"You know what it is." Her smile widened into a grin.

"By the mane Lu, do you and Susan have no subtlety?" I giggled at which Lucy scoffed and shuffled further onto my bed and crossed her legs. Aravis stared at Lucy in surprise before leaning curiously forward. "I'll take that as a no."

"Well?" Lucy leaned her elbows on her lap and then rested her chin on her fists. I rolled my eyes.

"We're taking it slow..." I mumbled quietly. I heard an excited squeal escape Lucy's mouth followed by a loud fit of giggles.

"I knew it! Susan's going to be _so_ jealous once she finds out I knew before her." Lucy grinned jumping up onto her knees and bounced on the mattress. "I told him time and time again to just get on with it but he just wouldn't listen. You know how men are, don't like to admit their feelings but it honestly was a bit obvious right from the start but -"

"Slow down wait, do you mean to say that Edmund told you before he told me?" I frowned.

"Well, I _am_ his sister – his favourite sister, I might add – so I just wriggled the answer out of him." She smiled with a proud puff of her chest. I suddenly remembered the moment that Lucy caught me after Edmund had walked away from kissing me and I found myself wondering why I was so surprised to begin with.

I raised an eyebrow. "Has he told you that you're his favourite sister?"

"Not exactly, but I know it to be true." Lucy grinned. "So what exactly did he say to make you agree? I want the details."

"Ew, Lucy this is your _brother _we're talking about. In fact there is no way I'm talking about Edmund to you. It's too weird." I felt a little shudder shoot down my spine at the thought.

Lucy pouted and let out a huff. "Spoil-sport."

I shook my head and rested against my pillows, turning my attention to Aravis who was still sitting awkwardly in her chair. "So, how are you finding Archenland?"

She looked at me and a tight smile appeared on her mouth. "Absolutely freezing." To emphasise this she shuddered in her seat and she wrapped her arms around herself. Lucy got up off the bed and headed over to stoke up the fire in the grate.

"Yes I suppose Calormen would be hotter than here. Narnia is in the middle when it comes to the weather isn't it Lu? Even though Narnia is further north than Archenland I think." I frowned as Lucy chuckled. I shrugged. "I was never that good at geography."

"It's just the land protesting against the White Witch." Lucy said as she joined us again. "Peter says that during the winter in the northern woods, there isn't one snowflake to be seen at all."

Aravis sat up in her chair interested. "Shasta and I have heard so many stories about Narnia from Hwin and Bree that I almost began to imagine what it would look like."

"Who are Hwin and Bree?" I wondered aloud.

"Bree and Hwin are Talking Horses that accompanied us from Calormen." Aravis quickly explained. "Is it really true that there are other Talking Beasts in your country?"

Lucy nodded. "Yes and all sorts of other creatures. There are the fauns, the dryads, centaurs, good giants, dwarves and even a few Marsh-Wiggles."

"Marsh-_what_?" Aravis interrupted as if we had just said a rude word.

"Marsh-Wiggles," I pronounced fondly, remembering the odd-looking tribes-people we had come across in the Pevensies first few years of their reign. Peter had thought that they were fearsome creatures of the earth to start with and it had taken all of Edmund's persuasion for him not to attack them there and then in fright. "They are creatures from the marshes in the north. A cross of toad, fish and scarecrows I think and a bit of an odd bunch."

Lucy giggled. "Yes, they are definitely ones for melancholic humour."

"I don't think they even know what humour is." I grinned wryly at Lucy who laughed aloud.

Throughout the day we chatted and laughed and caught up with each other until Lucy had to leave to get ready for the Coronation. I decided that I too should get ready but I decided to try to find something of my own to wear instead. There was no way I was going to wear something as hideous as that dress.

I gingerly slipped my feet from my covers and slowly stood up, padding over to my wardrobe and tried looking for a dress that wasn't so hideous. After almost half-an-hour of searching I eventually settled on a pale green dress with long flowing sleeves that have sparkling jewels crusted along the edge of the bodice. It would have to do. Slipping it on with a slight wince I loosely tied up the back of the strings hoping to see my lady's maid before I went down.

I was met with loud blaring pipe music, so jolly that I felt a small smile twitch itself onto my mouth at the sight of everyone dancing and merrymaking. It was almost as good as Christmas at Cair Paravel. The throne room of King Lune's palace was huge, filled with rich tapestries and fiery plinths that warmed the room to a pleasant temperature. I spotted Narnians mingling with Archenlanders, chatting and celebrating, singing and storytelling of the magnificent battle that had passed and how each one of their roles was detrimental to the defeat of the dastardly Calormenes.

"I tell you now, my dear friend, if I hadn't thrown myself in the path of that brute I am sure her young majesty's life would have been in peril." A short red dwarf with pointy horizontal moustache beamed.

"You didn't throw yourself in front of the man. You tripped over your own feet!" A Talking Panther guffawed at the dwarf. "Honestly you have as much stealth and balance as a wombat on stilts!"

"What are stilts?"

"I don't actually know. I heard one of the human folk say the phrase." The cat gave a little shrug before they headed away from the drinks table, their conversation continuing onto the popular topic of Rabadash's ridiculous fate. I shook my head at the thought and poured myself some wine.

"Lady Alexandra, you made it down I see." I turned to see Corin and grinned at the sight of him. He was dressed in a grey tunic with a silver sash that made his green eyes seem brighter. His usually shaggy blonde hair was brushed back neatly, making his face look thinner.

"Only just, look at you! You look smart." I refrained myself from ruffling his hair in affection. I noticed a light pink blush touch up his cheeks.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked suddenly. I blinked.

"Me? Okay sure, I will warn you though I'm a poor substitute for Susan when it comes to ballroom." I chuckled to which he shrugged good-naturedly. I tipped the rest of my wine down my throat and then took his hand letting him lead me out into the middle of the room. He gingerly placed his hand on my waist and my shoulder before I corrected him by taking his hand in my own. The blush on his cheeks grew brighter and I decided to lead to save him any further embarrassment. After three steps he stumbled and almost crushed my toe. I shook my head with a small smile, trying to discreetly shake the pain from my foot beneath the folds of my skirt. "Blimey, you make me look almost graceful. I take it you don't dance with women much."

"Not really." He mumbled as he stumbled again, glancing down at his feet. I shook my head with a small smile.

"Try to imagine you're boxing against me. It might help with your footwork." Corin looked up in surprise, nodding as he took a small step back and started again. He still stumbled a few times but at least now my toes were about saved for now.

When a faster song started to play, I decided to teach him a jive. I wasn't really sure what the exact moves were but we were both giggling towards the end of it.

"That is the oddest dance I've ever come across. Is it Narnian?" Corin chuckled as he tried to catch his breath.

"I think it is a bit. We used to dance it back in England when there was any swing or jazz music on but only at Christmas time or birthdays mostly." I shrugged as Corin tried to spin me around.

"I haven't a clue what you just said there but I'm assuming it is." Corin replied cheekily. His gaze turned to something over my shoulder and a smirk appeared on his cheek. "Guess who I've just spotted?"

"Houdini?" I grinned to which he gave me a bemused look.

He shook his head. "King Eddie of course."

"Don't let him catch you calling him that. You've only just gotten into his good books."

"Is that what you call them? I thought we were almost going to have it out at each other. Shame. Would've been a good match I don't doubt." He sighed and I laughed at the thought.

"It would have been entertaining. I might suggest it for the annual tournament next summer." Just as the song began to flow into another slower one filled with pipes and horns I decided to get another drink. I curtsied to Corin and left with a smile and he headed off to find his new twin.

Pouring myself a goblet of wine I turned my gaze over everyone in the room. Lucy was dancing with a fox, whose orange fur glistened in the light of the room. It was quite odd trying to dance with an animal as they don't have arms to hold onto so Lucy and the fox had managed to do a form of two-step which involved a lot of spinning around and hopping. I gazed over the rest of the crowd spotting Sir Peridan suavely kissing the hand of an Anvardian woman as all of her friends starting giggling into their hands at the boldness of it.

It wasn't long before I finished my goblet and poured another. The wine here was very strong. I wonder if Bacchus had arrived some time before with his lovely maenads to provide the wine. The first time I tasted his wine I nearly fainted at the richness of it and I wasn't surprised why the wild women who traveled with him liked it so much. By the end of my fifth goblet I felt a light buzz around my ears which I enjoyed and made me feel cheerful. The pain in my stomach was numbed to a dull throb but it was bearable.

I spotted Edmund speaking with King Lune and his noblemen. The buzz in my head told me to go and kiss him, there and then in the middle of the room in front of everyone and I will admit it was a tempting idea. I could imagine the looks of shock and surprise of everyone in the room but instead I came up with an idea.

I strode over with my head held high, feeling bold and I cleared my throat when I arrived. "Excuse me your majesty," I curtsied to King Lune before laying my hand on Edmund's arm. "May I borrow his majesty for a moment? I'm afraid there is a pressing matter I must speak to him about. Physician work, you see."

King Lune raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Physician work? Is that the excuse these days?" He turned to his noblemen around him with a jolly chuckle. I joined in with a small smile, noticing the confused expression on Edmund's face out of the corner of my eye. King Lune nodded, making a shooing gesture and chuckled to his noblemen. "Youth today, honestly it's not as if they haven't got enough time ahead of them."

I dragged a bemused Edmund away from the party and up to the rest of the castle, heading down a familiar corridor towards the guest quarters. "Alexandra, where are we going? I don't need a check up, my shoulder is fine."

"I know. It was just an excuse to get you alone."

"Are you drunk?" Edmund asked with a laugh. I spun around and gasped at him with a mock serious look.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I be drunk at a time like this." I said although I think it came out a little slurred. Edmund raised an eyebrow. "Okay maybe a bit tipsy but I'm not drunk."

He rolled his eyes and I stuck my tongue out at him childishly. When I reached my quarters, I made a quick glance up and down the corridor before grabbing Edmund by his shirt and pushed him through the door. "Whoa, be careful! What's going on?" Edmund chuckled as he nearly tripped over his own feet. I closed the door shut and spun to face him with a mischievous grin. "Alexandra?"

A quiet click sounded in the room as my fingers locked the door. Edmund raised an eyebrow at me and tipped his head. "Something tells me that we're not going back to the party."

I made a slow shrug. "It was getting late anyway, I'm sure they won't miss us."

"So why are we here?" Edmund asked as I took a step forward, dropping the key between us and swiftly kicked it underneath the bed. Edmund's gaze followed the path of the key. "Interesting development." He noted before I reached out to his sword belt, unfastening the buckle, taking his sword off and placing it on my dressing table.

When I turned back to him I placed my hand on his chest and pushed him back until he fell back and hit the mattress with a soft_ flump_. I carefully climbed over and straddled his waist with a smile, staring down at him as a flush blew up on his face. He rested back on his elbows. "Okay, steady on. I thought you wanted this courtship to go slow -"

"Stop chattering Edmund. You're killing the mood." I leaned down and planted a small peck on his mouth. He fell into a quiet stupor. "We're not going to do anything like _that._ I just wanted to talk." I kissed him again with a smile. "And maybe do some other things..."

"Okay. You may have to get off me though, you're a little heavy." I gasped and slapped his chest lightly.

"Cheeky sod..." I muttered as I slid off him, flopping down beside him on the bed. Edmund rolled over to face me and I felt his hand rest on my waist. I flushed and ducked my head into his chest.

"Are you uncomfortable?" he asked warily. I shook my head.

"No, just a little nervous." I felt a little flutter in my stomach although I'm pretty sure that was just the wine settling.

"Why?" Edmund asked squeezing my side gently before his hand rested just below my ribs.

"Well, we're both courting now. It's different." I looked up at him with a sigh. "I'll have to resign from my job. I can't exactly carry on as Physician if I'm having a relationship with one of my patients, can I? It's wrong." I let out a huff into Ed's collarbone. I wriggled until my head was lying on his chest and his hand was resting on my stomach.

"We'll have to find something else for you to do. You could help the librarian with organising the scrolls." Edmund suggested. I shook my head.

"I already do that." I felt Ed shift to face me. "What? You can't assume that Philius would allow me to spend so much time in there without doing the odd job. I know that place like the back of my hand." Edmund shook his head in amazement.

"Well...I don't know maybe you could help me with court matters."

I shook my head. "I'd only distract you."

"Fair point." He laughed before leaning down and pecking my lips. "Ha, I love doing that. You're eyes light up every time."

I sat up and sent him a suspicious look. "Are you going soppy on me?"

"No," he shook his head with a chuckle. He tried to kiss me again but I moved back and stared at him in surprise.

"Yes you are! What have I done to you?" I gasped as Edmund rolled his eyes. He leaned closer to me pressing his lips to mine as he pushed me gently on my back. I ran my hand through his hair pulling him closer and he obliged without any more encouragement. I felt the familiar weight of his body pressing against mine and his hands roamed around my waist and sides. My hands traveled down his chest touching the firm muscles underneath his tunic and I found my fingers untying the strings at his collarbone, pulling the cloth apart so I could reach his skin. Edmund paused and broke off our kissing to look at me with an amused look.

"I think we should stop this now." He whispered in my ear. His breath made my hair tickle my skin as he spoke and it sent little shivers down my spine.

"Why?" I protested, staring at him with a frown.

"Because you're drunk and you've locked the door." He muttered pressing a kiss to my jaw that heated my skin.

"What's the door got to do with this?" I was puzzled at his random trail of thought.

There was a small chuckle on the breath he let out. "Everything Alexandra, trust me."

I sighed as he pulled away and lay down beside me on the mattress. My head began to feel heavy so I scooted up the bed and placed it on one of the soft pillows. Edmund followed along, pulling the comforter up over the both of us. I suddenly noticed the dim light in the room which was only coming from the fireplace. The curtains had been closed in my absence so I can only assume that it was late in the night. I didn't hear any footsteps outside of the door I locked so the party downstairs must still be going on. I smiled to myself.

"Why are you smiling? Am I that good a kisser?" Edmund chuckled, absent-mindedly drawing circles on my arm with his fingertips.

"Nothing. I just remembered a punch line to a funny joke I heard earlier."

"Which was?"

"I can't remember." I grinned to which Ed rolled his eyes. I pressed a kiss to his lips and felt him smile. "Shall we go to sleep then your majesty?"

"I think we should my lady." He pressed one last kiss to my mouth and then pulled me close to rest against him. He was really warm and familiar and I found myself falling asleep in seconds.

* * *

The room was spinning around me in a blur, whirling and twirling faster and faster and faster until I felt a blow to the head. Everything went black and I found myself shivering and wet. I groggily opened my eyes. There was a dark silhouette in front of me so I reached out and felt something cold under my fingertips. I blinked until my eyes adjusted to the darkness around me. I peered closer to the silhouette and found that it was as big as me. Maybe even bigger, I think. I traced my hands up the object feeling my heart beating faster as a feeling wriggled into the back of my mind. What was it? What is that? Is that a..? No it couldn't be a... it was a neck.

"Hello? Who are you?" I whispered running my hand up the side of their face hoping to figure out who I was touching. "Sorry about this but I don't know who you are. Can you tell me your name? Please?"

I reached higher until I felt the top of his head. Whoever it was had long hair. I could feel the ends of it tickling the top of my forearms. There was something dry and crusty at the top of their head. "By the mane are you hurt?"

I took their pulse on the side of their neck but I couldn't find anything. My heart stuttered in shock. I heard the sound of a match being struck and lit behind me lighting up the face of the person I was touching.

I screamed scrambling as far back as I could get. Staring back at me with blank empty eyes was Falstaff's body decorated with dark red trails of dried blood trickling down his face.

I woke up with a choking gasp searching around the room for Falstaff. The fire in the gate had now been extinguished and it seemed cold as a small breeze gently blew the curtains into the room. I felt a cold shiver run down my back. The quiet groaning of springs alerted me to Edmund rolling over in his sleep, his head curling up on my pillows but his eyes did not open.

Letting out a breath I didn't even know I was holding I cautiously climbed off the bed and tiptoed over to shut the curtains closed. The silver lumen of the moon cast a cool glow over the city of Anvard making it seem almost like a ghost town. I knew this was a silly thought and one that I shook from my head ferociously. It was just because of my dream. Just a silly fantasy, nothing more, I told myself. But as I grabbed hold of the curtains to pull shut, I glimpsed a shadow moving along the walls of the courtyard. I stared as the shadow glided towards the gates, somehow evading the sentry guards as if it were invisible. As if it was being aided by some form of sorcery. I wondered whether to alert the rest of the castle to the intruder when it suddenly stopped near a large fountain in the middle of the courtyard. It was a dark cloaked figure, standing in defiance to all who might catch them. How could it be that no one could see them? There must be someone who could see the intruder.

The intruder turned and faced me, tipping their head up to meet my gaze. My heart hammered in my chest and I felt my hands trembling. The figure raised his arm up and tipped back his hood and I gasped at his dark skin and even darker eyes. It was Ashonit.

I felt my legs give way beneath me as I fell back, knocking over a pitcher of water as I went sending it crashing to the floor. Edmund woke with a start on the bed but all I could see were Ashonit's eyes glinting with malice in the moonlight. I swore that he was grinning as if there was some funny joke. "Alexandra? What's the matter? Why are you on the floor?"

"It was Ashonit! He's here! In the courtyard, look!" I gasped pointing at the window shakily. Edmund leapt out of bed and ran to the window staring out into the dim city below.

"Alexandra there is no one there." He said from the window. I shook my head, pulling myself up and staring out of the window to see for myself. The courtyard was void of any living being.

"Edmund he was right there, I swear on my life he was there! He was looking at me. Taunting me. I know it. He was there!" I felt my heart beating in panic. Where could he have gone? "Edmund you must believe me."

He gathered me in his arms. "I will order the guards to search the grounds and the city before we leave and I will let his majesty know of Ashonit in the morning. I promise Alexandra I will not let anything harm you whilst I am alive and breathing. Do you understand?" I nodded my head and hugged him tightly, grasping his shirt to stop my hands from shaking. "Come back to bed. We have a long day tomorrow and you will need all your strength."

Edmund led me back to bed and I sat down on the bed, wrapping the comforter around my trembling shoulders. "Edmund?" I whispered as he looked up at me. "Close the curtains."

He nodded and shut them firmly double checking that the window was locked tightly as well. I lay back down on the bed and Edmund joined me, gathering me once more in his arms and protecting me from harm. Only the harm was already done and I fear there is more yet to come.


End file.
